Maverick American lawyer Ed Fagan has filed a high profile case against Poland over pre-war debts to private individuals. Fagan, who was a central figure in the infamous Swiss Banks claims, is primarily acting for the descendents of Polish Jewish families whose bonds were never repaid after 1939. Fagan believes that all in all, the Polish state and its national bank are liable for over 1 billion dollars to the scattered families.
However, whilst the Swiss banks eventually settled out of court with a sum of 1.25 billion dollars, it is unlikely that Fagan will find the Polish case as straightforward. The main stumbling block is that whilst there was a solid line of continuity in the twentieth century Swiss state, Poland's odyssey was much more complex. Whilst the Swiss remained nominally neutral, the Poles endured invasion and occupation by both the Soviets and the Nazis. By the end of the war, Poland was materially ruined and the civilian population had been decimated. Under the aegis of Stalin, the Communist party seized power, whilst the impoverished government-in-exile remained in London until 1990.
Mr Fagan has criticized the Polish Communist state for not paying the bonds back, but many legal experts are suggesting that too much time has now passed for significant reparations to be made. The lapse of time, coupled with the reality that post-communist Poland remains a relatively poor country, does not bode well for the New York lawyer, who is equally renowned for his great successes as for his wrestles with fool's gold.
|