Swiss Bank UBS AG Sued by U.S.

2009-02-20 18:49:53 (GMT) (WiredPRNews.com - Law, News)

The U.S. government has filed a lawsuit against the largest bank in Switzerland.

WiredPRNews.com – The United States government has filed a lawsuit against UBS AG in an effort to get the large Switzerland bank to disclose financial information on American customers. As reported on Bloomberg.com, the government has alleged that over 50,000 Americans have hidden assets contained in Swiss accounts that have gone unreported to tax authorities.

John A. DiCicco, acting Justice Department tax division assistant attorney general is quoted in the report as saying in a statement, “At a time when millions of Americans are losing their jobs, their homes and their health care, it is appalling that more than 50,000 of the wealthiest among us have actively sought to evade their civic and legal duty to pay taxes.”

UBS is quoted as releasing the statement, “UBS believes it has substantial defenses.” Roy Smith who teaches finance at New York University’s Stern School of Business is quoted as remarking of the implications for the possible outcome of the case, “If you get to the point where you’re able to get information on 52,000 accounts just because they exist, not because of evidence of a crime, you’ve gotten rid of Swiss banking secrecy forever.”