Conference on Jewish Material Claims Against Germany (Claims Conference)

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"Gold Train" Settlement Will Fund Services for Hungarian Holocaust Survivors; Objections, Exclusions Due August 1, 2005

A Settlement has been preliminarily approved by U.S. District Judge Patricia Seitz in a class-action lawsuit brought by Jewish Hungarian victims of Nazism and heirs of Hungarian Nazi victims against the United States government regarding the handling of property contained on the “Hungarian Gold Train,” in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida.The case, known as Rosner v.United States, was originally filed in May 2001.

The Hungarian Gold Train consisted of approximately 24 freight cars that contained personal property stolen or otherwise taken from Hungarian Jews during World War II by the Nazi regime and its collaborationist Hungarian government. The train came into the custody of the U.S. military in Austria at the conclusion of the war. The lawsuit alleges that the United States mishandled the contents of the train, but the United States denies any legal liability in the handling of the Hungarian Gold Train property.

As part of the Settlement, the U.S. government has agreed to pay up to $25.5 million, of which approximately $21 million will be used to fund social service projects benefiting eligible class members. A proposed plan of allocation will be developed by the Conference on Jewish Material Claims Against Germany, in consultation with lawyers involved in the class action, appropriate social service agencies and Class Members, and submitted to the Court for its approval.If the Settlement is approved, Hungarian Jewish victims of Nazism may be able to receive assistance from Jewish social service agencies.The Settlement does not provide for direct payments to Class Members as compensation for property lost on the Hungarian Gold Train.

The U.S. government will pay another $500,000 to create an archive of documents and materials relating to the Hungarian Gold Train and the looting of the Hungarian Jewish community. The archives will be available for scholarly research, educational purposes, class members’ use, and for the benefit of future generations.In addition, the U.S. government represented that, to the best of its knowledge, all documents relating to the Gold Train have been declassified. If the government finds that there are documents that have not been declassified, it will review them to determine if they can be declassified.If the Settlement is finally approved, the United States will issue a statement of acknowledgment about the events concerning the Gold Train.

Additional information about the Settlement is located at the website of the Hungarian Gold Train Settlement, www.hungariangoldtrain.org, in several languages.

Class Members included in the Settlement are Jews that were born before May 8, 1945 who lived in the 1944 borders of Greater Hungary some time between 1939 and 1945 and the heirs of Hungarian Jewish Nazi victims.Class Members may comment on, object to, or exclude themselves entirely from the Settlement by informing the Court.Comments or objections to the Settlement that are filed with the Court will be available for the Court’s review prior to any final decision regarding the Settlement. Objections to and requests for exclusion from the Settlement must be in writing. They must include the specific information that is detailed at www.HungarianGoldTrain.org or available from the Notice Provider, either through e-mail at HGT@claimscon.org, or by regular mail at: Hungarian Gold Train Notice Provider, P.O. Box 1570, New York, NY 10159, USA. Objections and requests for exclusion must be mailed to the Notice Provider and must be postmarked no later than August 1, 2005. Class Members wishing to object to or exclude themselves from the Settlement will not have to appear personally in Court. Objections and requests for exclusion cannot be done by telephone or e-mail.

Class Members who do not exclude themselves from the Settlement will be legally bound by it and not able to sue the United States concerning the legal claims resolved in the Hungarian Gold Train lawsuit.

Class Members who ask to be excluded will not be eligible for any benefits from the Settlement, nor can they object to the Settlement. They will not be bound by anything that happens in this lawsuit.

The Court will hold a fairness hearing on this proposed Settlement on September 26, 2005, at 10 a.m. in Miami, at which time it will consider whether to approve the Settlement.Class Members may appear through counsel of their own choosing at their own expense.

To see the full terms, or to request instructions for exclusion from, commenting on, or objecting to the Settlement please go to www.HungarianGoldTrain.org,or email HGT@claimscon.org, or write to Notice Provider P.O. Box 1570, New York, NY 10159, U.S.A.

The plaintiffs were represented by the law firms Cuneo Waldman & Gilbert, LLP (Washington, D.C.), Hagens Berman Sobol Shapiro, LLP (Seattle, WA) and Dubbin & Kravetz, LLP (Miami, FL).To contact attorneys for the plaintiffs, please e-mail: brent@hbsslaw.com.

Please check the website periodically for updates.

PLEASE DO NOT WRITE OR CALL THE COURT OR THE CLERK’S OFFICE FOR INFORMATION.

For more information about the Settlement, call:

In North America: 1-800-562-0831
In Israel: 1-80-921-4806

In Hungary: 00-800-737-47576

In Australia: 1-800-35-7208

In all other countries: Please make a collect (reverse charge) br> call to the United States at: 646-519-8701