Firm loses faith in derivative case judge
Firm loses faith in derivative case judge
JAKARTA (JP): The United Kingdom-based Bankers Trust
International PLC. demanded on Tuesday the replacement of the
judge presiding the cases against two local companies over
disputed derivative transactions.
Bankers Trust's lawyer Ibrahim Senen said the replacement was
needed because Bankers Trust felt the presiding judge violated
civil procedural law and gave unfair treatment in both of the
company's separate cases against PT Mayora Indah and PT Jakarta
International Hotel & Development (JIHD).
"The presiding judge did not give equal opportunity between
the defendant and the plaintiff in presenting their evidence," he
said, citing the defendant's evidence and legal proposals to the
judge were frequently rejected without good reasons.
Mayora and JIHD, both listed on the Jakarta Stock Exchange
(JSX), filed lawsuits at the South Jakarta District Court against
Bankers Trust in April for providing risky banking transactions
without prior financial advice. The transactions, the plaintiffs
said, had caused them great financial losses.
The two cases were presided by Judge J.M.T. Simatupang.
Ibrahim said the judge, for example, rejected the defendant to
bring in independent opinions from expert witnesses but allowed
the plaintiff to revise the content of their lawsuits after the
court hearing had already proceeded.
The plaintiffs' lawyer representing both Mayora and JIHD
against Bankers Trust, Hotman Paris Hutapea, said the defendant's
request to replace the presiding judge was baseless, saying that
if the defendant did not agree with the judge they could just
exercise their appeal rights at the higher court.
Hotman also denied the fact the judge rejected evidence
submitted by the defendants.
"The judge actually accepted the defendant's evidence
physically but rejected to qualify it as evidence for the court,"
Hotman said.
Other cases of derivative transactions at the South Jakarta
District Court such as that filed by Suryamas Duta Makmur are all
with the same plaintiff lawyer Hotman Paris, and the same judge
J.M.T. Simatupang.
"It adds to our curiosity of why the same lawyer and the same
judge are handling these derivative cases at the South Jakarta
Court," Ibrahim added.
The derivative contract between Mayora and Bankers Trust,
which was signed in 1997 and falls due in 2004, requires Mayora
to exchange US$50 million in rupiah at an agreed rate with
Bankers Trust.
While the contract with JIHD was signed in 1995 and contained
different maturity dates, ranging from 2002 to 2005, with a net
delivery value of $88 million. (udi)