Motorola Inc. claimed another victory over the Uzan family in Turkey as the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit has upheld the ruling of a District Court ordering the Uzans to pay the vendor the sum of $2.13 billion, according to Motorola.
The U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York had ruled July 31, 2003, that the Uzans committed a “massive fraud” in obtaining a loan from Motorola.
The Appeals Court also forbids the Uzans from coming within 100 miles of New York “until such a time as the Uzans purged their prior contempt of court, including their defiance of court order requiring them to deposit the stolen Telsim stock into the court’s registry …” said Motorola.
The Uzans own the carrier Telsim and have been waging a bitter legal battle with Motorola for about two years.
“We are extremely gratified with the decision from the Appeals Court,” said Peter Lawson, executive vice president, general counsel and secretary of Motorola. “… We look forward to continuing our efforts to execute on the assets of the Uzans worldwide, including the Uzans’ jet aircraft, prestigious London apartments and luxury apartments in Midtown in New York City.”
Nokia also joined Motorola in providing the loan to the Turkish carrier. But the Finnish company did not issue a statement on the judgement, although it is a part of the legal tussle.