The Steady Drip: Supreme Court Removes Block on Judgment Involving Late Filipino Leader’s $40 Million (Connecting the Dots: Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor, The U.S. Supreme Court Justice’s, Their Secret Societies, Merrill Lynch, The Philippines & Soros Funding, All Networking)

Supreme Court Removes Block on Judgment Involving Late Filipino Leader’s $40 Million (Connecting the Dots: Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor, The U.S. Supreme Court Justice’s, Their Secret Societies, Merrill Lynch, The Philippines & Soros Funding, All Networking)

Alleged victims of abuse want control over $40 million in funds held in the United States by the late Filipino strongman, Ferdinand Marcos.

The Epoch Times

Matthew Vadum

11/17/2025|Updated: 11/17/2025

Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor speaks in the Great Hall of the Supreme Court in Washington on Dec. 18, 2023. Jacquelyn Martin/Pool/Getty Images

https://www.theepochtimes.com/us/supreme-court-removes-block-on-judgment-involving-late-filipino-leaders-40-million-5945027

The U.S. Supreme Court on Nov. 14 allowed a judgment to take effect that gives the Republic of the Philippines control over $40 million that the late Filipino leader Ferdinand Marcos held in the United States.

Marcos, who was president of the Philippines from 1965 to 1986, was described in court papers as “a dictator and kleptocrat” who “stole billions of dollars from the country and its people and “used networks of foreign financial accounts and shell corporations to hide stolen funds.”

The late president described his own reign as “constitutional authoritarianism.” His son, who shares his name, has been president of the Philippines since 2022.

Victims of the former regime who claim to have suffered human rights abuses won a $2 billion judgment against the estate and want control over the $40 million that the late president previously deposited in a Merrill Lynch account. They filed an emergency application with the Supreme Court on Oct. 30 after the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit on Aug. 18 gave control over the funds to the Philippines.

Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor on Nov. 5 temporarily stayed the Second Circuit judgment.

On Nov. 14, Sotomayor vacated the stay, which returned control over the monies to the government of the Philippines.

After the new ruling, Robert Swift of Kohn, Swift, and Graf, in Philadelphia, who is the attorney for the victims’ representative, Jose Duran, said he was disappointed the Supreme Court vacated the order.

“I intend to file a petition for certiorari by mid-December,” challenging the lower court orders, the lawyer told The Epoch Times.

A petition for certiorari is a document people file with the Supreme Court when they want to appeal a lower court ruling. For a case to be scheduled for oral argument, at least four of the court’s nine justices must vote to grant the petition.

Sotomayor said in her new order that she was canceling the stay “given the Government’s representation that it will not transfer the funds outside of the United States before the disposition of any petition for a writ of certiorari.”

The Second Circuit had affirmed a federal district court ruling giving control over the $40 million to the government of the Philippines.

The district court ruling, in favor of the government of the Philippines, which came at the conclusion of a lawsuit the U.S. attorney general filed on behalf of the Philippines, is based on a judgment that was issued in 2009 in the Philippines by an anti-corruption court called the Sandiganbayan.

The victims disagree with the ruling of the district court and wish to execute on the $40 million that Marcos previously held in an account at Merrill Lynch in New York City.

Duran, on behalf of the victims, asked the Supreme Court to stay the judgment to give him time to file a petition for certiorari with the high court, according to the application.

In the United States, a federal interpleader action was previously initiated.

That is a legal proceeding initiated by a party holding property who has received competing claims to it. The idea is that disputes over the property will be resolved in a single court case, preventing the property holder from having all claimants litigate their claims against each other.

The U.S. government had filed a lawsuit in U.S. courts under Section 2467 of Title 28 of the United States Code to enforce the 2009 judgment of a Philippine court. Section 2467 allows the federal government to sue to enforce a foreign court’s judgment for “any violation of foreign law that would constitute a violation or an offense for which property could be forfeited under Federal law if the offense were committed in the United States.”

The federal government also brought the lawsuit under a 1994 treaty between the United States and the Republic of the Philippines, which commits the two countries to assist each other in matters of criminal law, including the forfeiture of assets.

The victims argue U.S. courts should not recognize the foreign judgment because the Sandiganbayan lacked jurisdiction, the statute of limitations had lapsed, and the victims were never given proper notice.

On Jan. 12, 2024, a federal district court granted summary judgment recognizing the foreign judgment.

Duran appealed to the Second Circuit. On Aug. 18 of this year, the appeals court denied the appeal.

On Oct. 21, Duran asked the Second Circuit to stay the judgment because he intends to petition the Supreme Court for review. On Oct. 27, the request was denied.

Duran said in the application that the Second Circuit went against its own precedents and longstanding Supreme Court precedents.

The appeals court’s decision “is the first in American jurisprudence to recognize the in rem jurisdiction of a foreign court over property held in [custodia] legis of a U.S. federal court.”

In rem jurisdiction means jurisdiction, or authority, in a legal action taken directly against property, as opposed to a person. Property that is held in custodia legis is under the control of a court during a legal proceeding.

The Epoch Times reached out to the Department of Justice for comment. No reply was received by publication time.

Connecting the Dots:
Gregory J. Fleming was the president & COO for Merrill Lynch & Co., Inc. (Bailout Company) and is a member of Kappa Beta Phi.

Joseph J. Grano Jr. was the director of national sales for Merrill Lynch & Co., Inc. (Bailout Company) and is a member of Kappa Beta Phi.

Jerome P. Kenney was the vice chairman for Merrill Lynch & Co., Inc. (Bailout Company) and is a member of Kappa Beta Phi.

Peter S. Kraus was the EVP for Merrill Lynch & Co., Inc. (Bailout Company) and is a member of Kappa Beta Phi.

Robert J. McCann was the vice chairman for Merrill Lynch & Co., Inc. (Bailout Company) and is a member of Kappa Beta Phi.

Raymond J. McGuire was a managing director at Merrill Lynch & Co., Inc. (Bailout Company) and is a member of Kappa Beta Phi.

Doris P. Meister was the SVP for Merrill Lynch & Co., Inc. (Bailout Company) and is a member of Kappa Beta Phi.

William A. Schreyer was the chairman & CEO for Merrill Lynch & Co., Inc. (Bailout Company) and a member of Kappa Beta Phi.

Michael R. Bloomberg is a member of Kappa Beta Phi, a member of the Alfalfa Club and the founder of the Bloomberg Family Foundation.

Sandra Day O'Connor was the president of the Alfalfa Club and an associate justice for the U.S. Supreme Court.

George H.W. Bush was a member of the Alfalfa Club, a member of the Phi Beta Kappa Society, Jeb Bush’s father and a member of the Bohemian Club.

Jeb Bush is George H.W. Bush’s son, a member of the Alfalfa Club and a director at the Bloomberg Family Foundation.

Sonia Sotomayor is a member of the Phi Beta Kappa Society, a justice for the U.S. Supreme Court and a member of the Belizean Grove.

Belizean_Grove is the equivalent to the male-only social group, the Bohemian Club.

Henrietta Holsman Fore is a member of the Belizean Grove and a trustee at the Aspen Institute (think tank).

Bloomberg Family Foundation was a funder for the Aspen Institute (think tank).

Foundation to Promote Open Society was a funder for the Aspen Institute (think tank).

George Soros was the chairman for the Foundation to Promote Open Society.

Henry A. Kissinger was a lifetime trustee at the Aspen Institute (think tank), a member of the Bohemian Club and a director at the Atlantic Council of the United States (think tank).

Stuart E. Eizenstat is a director at the Atlantic Council of the United States (think tank) and a lobbyist for the Philippines.

Open Society Foundations was a funder for the Atlantic Council of the United States (think tank).

George Soros is the founder & chairman for the Open Society Foundations, a board member at the International Crisis Group and was the chairman for the Foundation to Promote Open Society.

Foundation to Promote Open Society was a funder for Refugees International, the Brookings Institution (think tank) and the Committee for Economic Development.

Fidel V. Ramos was a board member for the International Crisis Group and the president for the Philippines.

Frank G. Wisner was a U.S. ambassador for the Philippines and is a director emeritus for Refugees International.

Michael H. Armacost was a U.S. ambassador for the Philippines and the president of the Brookings Institution (think tank).

Stuart E. Eizenstat is a lobbyist for the Philippines and a trustee at the Committee for Economic Development.

Stephen W. Bosworth was a U.S. ambassador for the Philippines and is a trustee at the Committee for Economic Development.

Letitia James is the chair for the Committee on Economic Development, the Attorney General of New York and received her MPA at Columbia University.

Judge Arthur F. Engoron received his bachelor's degree from Columbia University, is an American judge serving on the New York Supreme Court since 2013. He presided over the New York civil investigation of the Trump Organization in 2024.

George E. Rupp was the president of Columbia University and a trustee at the Committee for Economic Development.

Foundation to Promote Open Society was a funder for the Committee for Economic Development and the Brookings Institution (think tank).

George Soros was the chairman for the Foundation to Promote Open Society.

Carol A. Melton was a trustee at the Committee for Economic Development and a director at the Economic Club of Washington.

Robert G. Liberatore was a trustee at the Committee for Economic Development and a director at the Economic Club of Washington.

David M. Rubenstein is the president of the Economic Club of Washington, the co-chairman for the Brookings Institution (think tank), a regent at the Smithsonian Institution, Joe Biden spent Thanksgiving with him and was a partner at Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman LLP.

Jane Sullivan Roberts was a partner at Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman LLP and is married to John G. Roberts Jr.

Vernon E. Jordan Jr. was the president of the Economic Club of Washington, is an honorary trustee at the Brookings Institution (think tank) and the president emeritus for the Robert Trent Jones Golf Club (Gainesville, VA).

John G. Roberts Jr. is an honorary member of the Robert Trent Jones Golf Club (Gainesville, VA), married to Jane Sullivan Roberts and the chief justice for the U.S. Supreme Court.

Samuel Anthony Alito Jr. is a justice for the U.S. Supreme Court and a member of the Phi Beta Kappa Society.

Stephen G. Breyer is a justice for the U.S. Supreme Court and a member of the Phi Beta Kappa Society.

Ruth Bader Ginsburg was a justice for the U.S. Supreme Court and a member of the Phi Beta Kappa Society.

Elena Kagan is a justice for the U.S. Supreme Court and a member of the Phi Beta Kappa Society.

Anthony M. Kennedy is a justice for the U.S. Supreme Court and a member of the Phi Beta Kappa Society.

David Hackett Souter was a justice for the U.S. Supreme Court and is a member of the Phi Beta Kappa Society.

Harry A. Blackmun was a justice for the U.S. Supreme Court and a member of the Phi Beta Kappa Society.

Lewis F. Powell Jr. was a justice for the U.S. Supreme Court and a member of the Phi Beta Kappa Society.

John Paul Stevens was a justice for the U.S. Supreme Court and a member of the Phi Beta Kappa Society.

William Howard Taft was the chief justice for the U.S. Supreme Court and a member of the Phi Beta Kappa Society.

Byron R. White was a justice for the U.S. Supreme Court and a member of the Phi Beta Kappa Society.

Potter Stewart was a member of the Phi Beta Kappa Society and a justice for the U.S. Supreme Court.

Sonia Sotomayor is a member of the Phi Beta Kappa Society, a justice for the U.S. Supreme Court and a member of the Belizean Grove.

Belizean_Grove is the equivalent to the male-only social group, the Bohemian Club.

George H.W. Bush was a member of the Bohemian Club, a member of the Phi Beta Kappa Society and a member of the Alfalfa Club and Jeb Bush’s father.

Jeb Bush is George H.W. Bush’s son, a member of the Alfalfa Club and a director at the Bloomberg Family Foundation.

Michael R. Bloomberg is a member of the Alfalfa Club, the founder of the Bloomberg Family Foundation and a member of Kappa Beta Phi.

Gregory J. Fleming is a member of Kappa Beta Phi and was the president & COO for Merrill Lynch & Co., Inc. (Bailout Company).

Joseph J. Grano Jr. is a member of Kappa Beta Phi and was the director of national sales for Merrill Lynch & Co., Inc. (Bailout Company).

Jerome P. Kenney is a member of Kappa Beta Phi and was the vice chairman for Merrill Lynch & Co., Inc. (Bailout Company).

Peter S. Kraus is a member of Kappa Beta Phi and was the EVP for Merrill Lynch & Co., Inc. (Bailout Company).

Robert J. McCann is a member of Kappa Beta Phi and was the vice chairman for Merrill Lynch & Co., Inc. (Bailout Company).

Raymond J. McGuire is a member of Kappa Beta Phi and was a managing director at Merrill Lynch & Co., Inc. (Bailout Company).

Doris P. Meister is a member of Kappa Beta Phi and was the SVP for Merrill Lynch & Co., Inc. (Bailout Company).

William A. Schreyer was a member of Kappa Beta Phi and the chairman & CEO for Merrill Lynch & Co., Inc. (Bailout Company).