Lawyers representing a Swiss bank appeared in a Florida court yesterday to block disclosure of documents relating to an alleged wife murderer and Irish citizen Mr James Sullivan.
The family of murdered Atlanta woman Ms Lita McClinton Sullivan is suing the bank for allegedly laundering up to $10 million on Mr Sullivan's behalf.
Mr Sullivan (62) fled the US after obtaining an Irish passport seven months after his wife's family successfully sued him for $4.6 million for unlawful killing.
His lawyer had written to the Irish Consulate in New York in 1994 explaining that he needed the passport process to be carried out quickly because his client "intends to travel extensively in the near future".
Mr Sullivan, whose grandparents are Irish, received the passport a month later, and fled in 1997 when US police were about to charge him with murder.
The McClinton family never received the $4.6 million, and a private detective hired by the family alleges that Mr Sullivan's money was laundered through the Julius Baer bank, which has offices in Florida.
Mr Sullivan, an inheritance multi-millionaire, fled to Thailand for nearly five years, but was captured in July 2002 after he was featured on the US TV show America's Most Wanted. He is awaiting extradition to Georgia, where prosecutors say they will seek the death penalty if he is convicted of murder.
Ms McClinton Sullivan's mother, Ms Jo Ann McClinton, an African-American representative in the Georgia state assembly, has said that the Julius Baer bank helped Mr Sullivan to hide his funds from her family by moving the money to Liechtenstein and allowing Mr Sullivan to draw from the funds through a shell company in the Caribbean.
The bank has successfully applied to have the case moved to a Federal Court in the Southern District of Florida, and its lawyers want to stop disclosure of bank documents to the McClinton family's lawyers until a motion to dismiss the case has been heard.
The family is also suing a senior representative of the bank in Florida, Mr Michael Blank. Court documents allege Mr Blank conspired with a Liechtenstein banker to set up foreign accounts for Mr Sullivan while he was on the run from US authorities.
The lawsuit alleges Mr Sullivan paid for his lavish lifestyle while on the run by drawing money from the Julius Baer bank. Both the bank and Mr Blank deny the allegations.
Ms McClinton Sullivan was shot dead at her Atlanta townhouse on January 16th, 1987, after opening the door to a man she believed to be a flower delivery merchant.
The alleged assassin, Mr Phillip Anthony Harwood, pleaded guilty in February to reduced charges. He was sentenced to 20 years in prison in exchange for testimony against Mr Sullivan.