An article posted earlier today on the website of Abu Dhabi newspaper, The National, reports that a Bahraini tribunal has ruled that key documents in the AHAB/ Maan al Sanea dispute were not forged, as has been alleged.
The article by The National’s Frank Kane and Asa Fitch reported earlier today that lawyers working for Ahmad Hamad Al Gosaibi and Brothers, the Saudi Arabian conglomerate, have alleged that Maan al Sanea, a Saudi billionaire, forged signatures on financial documents to commit a US$10 billion (Dh36.72bn) fraud against the group. Al Gosaibi claimed the signatures on three financial documents – two credit facility letters and one guarantee agreement – were not signed by Suleiman Hamad al Gosaibi, the late chairman of the family conglomerate, but were forgeries. The documents were all dated June 29 2008.
Mr al Sanea has consistently denied the allegations.
The recently formed Bahrain chamber for dispute resolution (BCDR) ruled at the end of last month there was no evidence to show the signatures were not genuine. “The tribunal is satisfied … the signatures which are alleged to be forged are actually genuine and written under the hand of the deceased, Suleiman Hamad Ahmad al Gosaibi, and the tribunal concludes from the circumstances of the case, and the papers submitted thereon, that there are no merits to support the allegation of forgery,” the BCDR ruled.
The ruling represents a reverse for the al Gosaibi family in its legal actions against Mr al Sanea and his company, the Saad Group. Forgery allegations have been a key part of Al Gosaibi’s case against Mr al Sanea. It alleged he had forged the financial documents as the former chairman was terminally ill and undergoing medical treatment. The claims were supported by the accounting firm Deloitte, which investigated the allegations on behalf of Al Gosaibi and hired a specialist graphologist, the UK-based Dr Audrey Giles, who found there was evidence of forgery.
It will be interesting to see the implications of this Bahraini ruling on the dispute in other jurisdictions.
Click here for the full article in The National.
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