GENOCIDE HEIRS WIN COURT ROUND.

Byline: Helen Gao Staff Writer

In a victory for heirs of Armenian Genocide victims who are seeking outstanding life insurance benefits, a U.S. District Court judge has denied a motion by New York Life Insurance Co. to dismiss the lawsuit on jurisdictional grounds.

In a 31-page ruling entered into court records this week, Judge Christina A. Snyder rejected arguments by New York Life that California is an inappropriate venue for the case.

Attorneys for New York Life had argued the lawsuit should be resolved in France or London, because the life insurance policies in question stipulated those two countries for dispute resolution.

However, Snyder noted that given the age, financial constraints and health of some of the plaintiffs, transferring the case to Europe would be an undue hardship.

``Under these circumstances, the court finds that if plaintiffs were forced to litigate in England and France, they would suffer inconvenience serious enough to effectively deprive them of their day in court,'' Snyder wrote.

In the ruling, the judge also determined the Armenian Genocide Victims Insurance Act is constitutional. Passed by the California Assembly in 2000, the act grants courts in California jurisdiction over all claims against insurance carriers arising from the genocide, despite any contract provision to the contrary.

William Werfelman, vice president of New York Life, said his company is evaluating whether or not to appeal the ruling.

``The motion to dismiss had been filed to address a jurisdictional issue, relating only to the venue of the case, not the case's merits or lack of merits,'' he said. ``New York Life believes the law and the facts are firmly on its side in this matter.''

La Canada Flintridge resident Martin Marootian filed a class-action lawsuit against New York Life in 1999 along with 11 other plaintiffs, alleging that the insurance company had failed to honor the insurance policies of their family members killed in the Armenian Genocide around 1915. The latest estimate of plaintiffs is 10,000.

New York has denied the charges, saying the company has acted diligently to seek out beneficiaries of the genocide victims and paid all properly presented claims.

``For more than 80 years, New York Life has worked to help surviving Armenian families who suffered so greatly during this tragic period,'' Werfelman said.

Mark Geragos, who is representing the plaintiffs, said the judge's ruling moves the case forward.

``The fact of the matter is all along they were threatening this motion was going to be the end of this case,'' he said. ``Now we are able to get into the discovery phase of this case where we can prove everything we need to prove and get justice for the Armenian community.''

If both sides ever return to the settlement table, Geragos said, the ruling would give his clients greater bargaining power.

``I would say our leverage has increased dramatically,'' he said.

Both sides had been in negotiations previously and had announced a settlement of April, but the agreement fell apart recently.