Inside a Class Action: The Holocaust and the Swiss Banks

by Jane Schapiro

Book Overview

On October 21, 1996, attorney Michael Hausfeld, with a team of lawyers, filed a class-action complaint against Union Bank of Switzerland, Swiss Bank Corporation, and Credit Suisse on behalf of Holocaust victims. The suit accused the banks of, among other things, acting as the chief financiers for Nazi Germany. Hausfeld wanted to use the suit to prove that the banks not only concealed and refused to return millions of dollars in dormant accounts,...

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0299193306
• ISBN13: 9780299193300
• Release Date: October 2003
• Publisher: University of Wisconsin Press
• Length: 304 Pages
• Weight: 1.15 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.9" x 6.1" x 9.4"

Customer Reviews

A GREAT READ!!!!! Highly recommended!

Writer Jane Schapiro achieves the seemingly impossible -- Inside a Class Action is a NON-FICTION legal thriller! Schapiro provides a unique; "behind the scenes" look at the now-famous 1996 lawsuit filed against Swiss banks on behalf of Holocaust survivors. She provides amazing insight into a story that exploded onto the front pages, packed Congressional and Court hearings, and forever changed how the world views the Holocaust. Schapiro deftly guides the reader through all phases of this litigation, from early discussions to court hearings, private negotiations, and the ultimate settlement. Schapiro did her homework -- having conducted extensive interviews with politicians, attorneys (on both sides), historians, researchers and survivors, as well as having scoured archival documents, court and congressional transcripts, and reviewing reams of news coverage. She relays the good, the bad and the ugly -- providing an unvarnished look at legal infighting, political feuds, and clashing egos.Schapiro's special access to lead attorney Michael Hausfeld allows her to follow his legal "dream team" as it strips off the cloak of Swiss wartime neutrality and exposes a country and its bankers as economic allies of the Third Reich. Schapiro follows Hausfeld's decisionmaking as the case develops, and addresses important questions: What made Hausfeld take on such a case - pro bono no less? What professional and personal compromises did he make? Why did he choose to settle, rather than going to court? And was this truly a case about justice -- or money? Or both? Inside a Class Action powerfully demonstrates that justice is elusive.This is one of the most well written, informative and exciting books I have ever read. I highly recommend it.