Manny Rosenthal, 94, reached a settlement with the AMP after seeking as much as $200,000 in the NSW District Court, after the funds management giant “lost” a deposit made in 1982.
AMP transferred the original deposit of $20,000 to its joint venture Chase AMP, which the US bank bought out three years later. However, Rosenthal claims that when he contacted AMP, they had no record of his investment.
Mr Rosenthal’s lawyer John Kambas of JFK Legal said that after proceedings commenced AMP conceded that in 1988 the money was transferred to its joint venture Chase AMP.
“This was done without Manny’s consent and knowledge,” Mr Kambas, who was once an in-house lawyer at AMP, said.
“The fact that AMP took 32 years to tell Manny that they transferred his money – and only after he pushed them for answers – shows the hypocrisy of AMP and why there has been such a public backlash against them.”
The court claim alleged AMP failed in its duty of care to provide statements to Mr Rosenthal or to keep proper records of his investment.
The payout size was kept confidential under the terms of the settlement, yet Mr Kambas said, “I can tell you Manny was happy with the result.”
It was a “David and Goliath battle and in the end right was done,” Mr Kambas said.
Speaking with The Greek Herald, Mr Kambas said he initially thought the case was a joke, yet upon investigation he was “convinced that he was telling me the truth.”
“Manny had no choice but to fight and we started proceedings in the District Court. He wanted to tell his story,” Mr Kambas said to The Greek Herald.
