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FIRM TO EXAMINE ARMENIAN GENOCIDE FUND DISPUTE
By Mark Kellam
Glendale News Press
Dec 5 2011
CA
Deal puts under scrutiny insurance claims of $10,000 or more by
descendants of Armenian Genocide victims.
An accounting firm will review 178 insurance claims as part of a deal
struck in a case involving a multimillion-dollar compensation fund for
descendants of Armenian Genocide victims, attorneys announced Monday.
Lawyers Mark Geragos and Roman Silberfeld, who sit on opposing sides
of a dispute regarding the fund, said claims for $10,000 or more will
be examined to make sure there were no accounting discrepancies.
Originally, Silberfeld's client, Glendale-based attorney Vartkes
Yeghiayan, had sought an audit of all 1,300 claims made to a
compensation fund set up by France-based insurer Axa S.A. to check
for problems.
Accounting issues had previously been raised, including the assertion
that some claimants who received multiple checks only cashed those for
smaller amounts, even though checks for larger amounts were supposedly
sent out at the same time.
Also, in some instances, separate but identical claims were filed by
siblings. One sibling's claim would be approved, but the claim from
the other sibling would be denied.
Audit costs will come out of the $2.5 million left in a $17.5-million
compensation fund set up by Axa several years ago.
The attorneys also agreed that all claims will be moved to a neutral
location.
"That way everyone will have access to them," Silberfeld said.
The claims are currently stored in the basement of a building owned
by Geragos.
It was also discovered a few months ago that the multiplier used to
determine payment amounts was off by 0.1%.
Silberfeld and Geragos agreed that the correct multiplier will be
used on claims for $10,000 or more.
Claimants paid $10,000 will receive about $10 each, which is
economically feasible, Silberfeld said. Paying the additional amount on
claims under $10,000 would not be worth the time and postage, he added.
The fund's administrator, Glendale resident Persagh Kartalian, will
submit a sworn statement to the court providing details about the
fund's distribution, staff and operations, Silberfeld said.
Judge Christine Snyder said Kartalian's input is important. "He does
owe everyone here some explanation about what happened," she said.
Yeghiayan's motion is tied to a lawsuit filed earlier this year by
Geragos and attorney Brian Kabateck against Yeghiayan alleging that
he and his wife, attorney Rita Mahdessian, set up sham charities and
misused nearly $1 million during the last six years.
Geragos, Yeghiayan and Kabateck were on the same legal team that in
2005 brought a lawsuit that resulted in Axa's compensation fund, which
was set up to pay claims that it failed to compensate descendants of
Armenian Genocide victims who bought policies between 1875 and 1923.
From: A. Papazian
By Mark Kellam
Glendale News Press
Dec 5 2011
CA
Deal puts under scrutiny insurance claims of $10,000 or more by
descendants of Armenian Genocide victims.
An accounting firm will review 178 insurance claims as part of a deal
struck in a case involving a multimillion-dollar compensation fund for
descendants of Armenian Genocide victims, attorneys announced Monday.
Lawyers Mark Geragos and Roman Silberfeld, who sit on opposing sides
of a dispute regarding the fund, said claims for $10,000 or more will
be examined to make sure there were no accounting discrepancies.
Originally, Silberfeld's client, Glendale-based attorney Vartkes
Yeghiayan, had sought an audit of all 1,300 claims made to a
compensation fund set up by France-based insurer Axa S.A. to check
for problems.
Accounting issues had previously been raised, including the assertion
that some claimants who received multiple checks only cashed those for
smaller amounts, even though checks for larger amounts were supposedly
sent out at the same time.
Also, in some instances, separate but identical claims were filed by
siblings. One sibling's claim would be approved, but the claim from
the other sibling would be denied.
Audit costs will come out of the $2.5 million left in a $17.5-million
compensation fund set up by Axa several years ago.
The attorneys also agreed that all claims will be moved to a neutral
location.
"That way everyone will have access to them," Silberfeld said.
The claims are currently stored in the basement of a building owned
by Geragos.
It was also discovered a few months ago that the multiplier used to
determine payment amounts was off by 0.1%.
Silberfeld and Geragos agreed that the correct multiplier will be
used on claims for $10,000 or more.
Claimants paid $10,000 will receive about $10 each, which is
economically feasible, Silberfeld said. Paying the additional amount on
claims under $10,000 would not be worth the time and postage, he added.
The fund's administrator, Glendale resident Persagh Kartalian, will
submit a sworn statement to the court providing details about the
fund's distribution, staff and operations, Silberfeld said.
Judge Christine Snyder said Kartalian's input is important. "He does
owe everyone here some explanation about what happened," she said.
Yeghiayan's motion is tied to a lawsuit filed earlier this year by
Geragos and attorney Brian Kabateck against Yeghiayan alleging that
he and his wife, attorney Rita Mahdessian, set up sham charities and
misused nearly $1 million during the last six years.
Geragos, Yeghiayan and Kabateck were on the same legal team that in
2005 brought a lawsuit that resulted in Axa's compensation fund, which
was set up to pay claims that it failed to compensate descendants of
Armenian Genocide victims who bought policies between 1875 and 1923.
From: A. Papazian