Paul C. Benko
204 Passaic
Avenue, # 10
Belleville NJ
07109
Tel:
973-751-0614
April 16, 2008
Hon. Renee R. Roth
New York Surrogate's Court
31 Chambers Street
New York, NY 10007
Re: Estate of Ruth V.
Cardoso, File No. 2546 / 2002
Dear Surrogate Roth,
Perhaps you are aware of the decision of Judge Kristin Booth Glen in
this case dated March 17, 2008 in which she states that she will ask
you to overturn and vacate your prior decision and order in this case.
I am now writing to ask you not to vacate your prior order. My
daughter and I fulfilled all the required and long established
procedures of the New York Surrogates Court. We followed the required
rules and the letter of the law exactly. For example, we published
legal notices in the New York Law Journal on four successive weeks in
October and November 2003 at a cost of $2700. A hearing was held
before you in December 2003. Citibank, although under legal notice,
did not appear and answer at that hearing. As a result, their claims
were extinguished. They cannot be allowed to come into this court now
five years later and say that by the way there was another will in
Brazil.
Citibank still to this day has failed to produce the so-called "Brazil
Will". From Judge Glen's decision one would imagine that she was
holding the will in her hands. Actually, the will has not been
produced, not even a photocopy thereof.
At a conference before Judge Eva Preminger in 2005, Citibank was given
30 days to provide a copy of the will. Thirty days passed and Citibank
provided nothing. Nothing was filed with the court either. At the oral
argument on the motion for summary judgment in May 2006, Counsel for
Citibank stated that they had never agreed to provide the will. They
had only agreed to provided the do***ents on the basis of which they
had paid the money to Wolfgang Roddewig in Brazil. Those do***ents
consisted entirely of do***ents that Wolfgang Roddewig had sent to
Citibank in connection with his demands for the money. Those do***ents
were entirely self-serving. This court has yet to receive any
certified do***ents from the Widows and Orphans Court of Brazil. We do
not even know that such a court exists.
A motion for summary judgment can only be granted if there are no
triable issues of fact. In this case, there are many triable issues of
fact. For example, was there a will, who signed it, and what does it
say. According to do***ents received from Wolfgang Roddewig, Ruth
Cardoso was seriously ill, in bed, and on the brink of death. She was
so ill that she could not sign the will.
In addition, according to a letter received from Brazil which is in
the court file, the so-called "Brazil Will" only gave articles of
furniture and jewelry plus her apartment to the friends and neighbors
of Ruth Cardoso in Salvador, Brazil. It did not give any money.
Wolfgang Roddewig was not named as a beneficiary of the will. He got
into this case merely by being appointed as the Executor of the Estate
by the Widows and Orphans Court of Salvador Brazil. He has stated that
he intends to donate the money to the poor people living in the slums
of Brazil. If you believe that, there is a large bridge perhaps you
have seen just outside the door to your courthouse that I would like
to sell you.
After this case was argued orally and submitted in May 2006, it took
Judge Glen 22 months until March 2008 to decide the motion. This may
set a record for taking a long time to decide a motion.
I believe that this decision by Judge Glen is clearly erroneous and
must be set aside. Accordingly I ask you not to make any changes or
modifications in the order you signed in July 2004 until this can be
done.
I enclose a copy of a petition for a rehearing I have filed in this
case.
Very
Truly Yours
Pal C.
Benko
Copy to:
Barry R. Glickman
Zeichner, Ellman & Kraus LLP
Counsel for Citibank
575 Lexington Avenue
New York NY 10022
John Reddy
The Law Firm of Bekerman & Reddy
85 Worth Street
New York NY 10013
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