(March 23 – 11:35 ET) – England’s central bank faces a £1 billion lawsuit from Deloitte & Touche over the the collapse of the notorious Bank of Credit and Commerce International. A three-to-two split decision judgement from the UK’s House of Lords, yesterday, clears the way for the massive suit against the Bank. This is the first time the 300-year-old central bank will have been dragged into court.

Deloitte is expected to bring a case in the High Court against the Bank of England for £550 million plus interest, claiming that the Bank was negligent, it failed to prevent the collapse of BCCI in 1991, and that should never have given BCCI a banking licence. “We are delighted with today’s decision and hope that the proceedings can at least move ahead to an early Trial,” says Christopher Morris, the Deloitte partner leading the BCCI liquidation.

The case was not expected to succeed since it was thrown out of the European Court last year. Lord Hope of Craighead, who handed down the judgment, said, “I would hope that justice requires that the claimants be given an opportunity to present their case at trial so that its merits may be assessed in the light of evidence.”

“The Bank notes the decision was based on a narrow majority and regrets that it will now be necessary to incur the time and expense of a trial,” said a press release from the Bank of England.
-IE Staff