Just three investors have come forward to claim close to €2m windfall

High Court Reporters

Only three investors out of nearly 2,000 have come forward to claim nearly $2million (€1.74 million) in windfall monies from litigation and tax back, which is held in a trust investment fund that is being wound up, the High Court has heard

Some 2,000 individuals and corporate entities have an entitlement to sums of under €250 or more than $250.

The trustee of the fund moved two weeks ago to ask the High Court to allow US$1,964,141 to be lodged in court, to which the investors would then have to apply for payment.

The court heard there had been extensive steps over the years to contact eligible investors, but there had been very little response.

Two weeks ago the court ordered that certain steps be taken to notify investors of the application to lodge the funds to court.

These included advertisements in the Irish Independent and Wall Street Journal and on the trustee website as well as notifying all investors by post and/or email.

The trustee is State Street Custodial Services (Ireland) Ltd with registered office in Dublin and Putnam World Trust, an umbrella unit trust which appointed State Street to act as trustee in February 2000.

On Thursday, Stephen Brady, for the trustee, told Mr Justice Brian Cregan that just three investors had come forward and none had appeared in court for this application.

The judge said he had been astounded to hear on the previous day that so few had come forward despite various efforts by the trustee over 13 years to contact them.

He was "even more astounded now" to hear only three had since come forward.

He was satisfied to make the order that the funds be lodged in the court office in Euro at the prevailing exchange rate.

He said investors could be notified by post or email again or by advertisement on the trustee website but not in the newspapers, which Mr Brady said was rather expensive and would be another drain on the funds.

According to the court application, as an umbrella trust, the trust has several sub-funds.

Eleven of the funds have authorisations which have yet to be revoked by the Central Bank of Ireland (CBI) whereas 15 previously authorised funds have had authorisations revoked.

Due to a windfall resulting from class action litigation and/or tax reclaims arising before the appointment of new fund manager, Carne, monies were received into certain of the revoked funds.

As a result of this windfall, there are residual monies in certain of the revoked funds which are due to certain previous investors, numbering nearly 2,000.

Out of 485 individuals involved, 138 are due more than $250 while 289 are due less than $250. Of 1,429 corporate entities, 1,291 are due less than $250 and 138 are due more than that.