Barring a last-minute settlement, jurors in Brooklyn will soon hear claims that Arab Bank plc was complicit in a series of deadly terrorist attacks in the Middle East. U.S. District Judge Brian Cogan is set to hold jury selection on Monday in Linde v. Arab Bank, a decade-old lawsuit alleging that the Jordan-based financial giant illegally serviced the banking needs of Hamas and helped the designated terror group make payments to families of suicide bombers.
The first-ever U.S. terror financing trial represents a big challenge for defense lawyers at DLA Piper, who must overcome a damaging past discovery sanction to persuade jurors of Arab Bank’s innocence—even as Hamas and Israel are fighting fresh battles in Gaza. And it presents a historic opportunity for the unusual alliance of plaintiffs attorneys behind the case, including an Arkansas product liability lawyer who recovered $1 billion in settlements from Ford Motor Co.
