By Nate Raymond
NEW YORK, Dec 12 (Reuters) - The estates of victims of the
1983 bombing of U.S. Marine barracks in Beirut have dropped a
lawsuit against Standard Chartered Plc that accused the bank of
concealing Iranian transactions that could have satisfied a
$2.67 billion judgment.
The dismissal was disclosed in a court filing in U.S.
District Court in Manhattan on Wednesday.
The plaintiffs, who include representatives of the estates
of 241 U.S. servicemen killed in the attack, had obtained a
$2.67 billion default judgment against Iran in 2007 and have
sought to enforce it through various lawsuits. In the Standard
Chartered case, the plaintiffs contended the British bank had
interfered with collecting on the judgment.
The case was filed in August as a scandal brewed over
allegations that Standard Chartered was involved in concealing
Iran transactions that New York State's financial regulator said
totaled $250 billion. The bank settled with that agency for $340
million.
Earlier this week, the U.S. Justice Department and New York
District Attorney's office announced that Standard Chartered
agreed to pay an additional $327 million to resolve allegations
it violated U.S. sanctions against countries including Iran and
Sudan.
A pre-trial hearing in the Beirut case had been scheduled
for Friday. The lawsuit is being dismissed without prejudice,
meaning the plaintiffs can refile it at a later date.
Liviu Vogel, a lawyer for the bombing victims, declined to
say why the lawsuit was dropped or if the plaintiffs would file
new claims.
Julie Gibson, a spokeswoman for Standard Chartered, said the
case had not been settled and had no further comment.
The case is Deborah Peterson et al v Standard Chartered Bank
in U.S. District Court in the Southern District of New York No.
12-6257.
Follow us on Twitter @ReutersLegal | Like us on Facebook