No. 25-1089October Term 2025Petition Pending
Fairfield Sentry Ltd., et al., Petitioners v. Citibank NA London, et al.
Foreign liquidators for investment funds affected by Bernard Madoff’s fraud seek to use Chapter 15 bankruptcy proceedings to pursue claims under foreign law against Citibank and other financial institutions.
Case status
- Current stage
- Petition Pending
- Latest event
- Petition pending
- Decision timing
- No decision timeline until the Court agrees to hear the case.
- What it's about
Foreign liquidators for investment funds affected by Bernard Madoff’s fraud seek to use Chapter 15 bankruptcy proceedings to pursue claims under foreign law against Citibank and other financial institutions. They ask the Court to review the Second Circuit’s ruling that the Bankruptcy Code’s securities-transaction safe harbor bars those claims.
Question presented
1. Whether applying 11 U.S.C. 561(d), which instructs that provisions of the Bankruptcy Code relating to securities contracts apply in a Chapter 15 cross-border insolvency case as in a domestic bankruptcy in an American court is consistent with the presumption against extraterritoriality? 2. Whether the safe harbor for securities-related transfers under 11 U.S.C. 546(e), when applied through Section 561(d), bars foreign common-law claims seeking to undo securities-related transfers?
- Case path
United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit / Petition pending
- Area
Business and Regulation
Briefing
What it's about
Foreign liquidators for funds harmed by Bernard Madoff’s fraud want to bring foreign-law claims against Citibank and other financial institutions. They challenge a Second Circuit decision that the Bankruptcy Code’s safe harbor for securities-related transfers blocks those claims in a Chapter 15 cross-border insolvency case.
Argument
The case has not been scheduled for oral argument. The petitioners argue that applying the securities-transfer safe harbor to foreign-law claims conflicts with Chapter 15’s cross-border purpose and limits recovery for foreign investors.
Impact
The case could determine whether foreign fund liquidators can seek money for investors through U.S. courts after cross-border financial fraud. For example, it could affect foreign investors seeking recovery from financial institutions involved in securities-related transfers.
What is at stake in Fairfield Sentry Ltd. v. Citibank?
The case concerns whether foreign liquidators may use U.S. bankruptcy assistance to bring foreign-law recovery claims against financial institutions.
Who could be affected by the Fairfield Sentry case?
Foreign investors in Madoff-affected funds and financial institutions facing claims over securities-related transfers could be affected.
What happens next in Fairfield Sentry Ltd. v. Citibank?
The Court may decide whether to hear the case. If it grants review, it could later schedule oral argument.
Related cases
Grounding
- Grounding
- Primary materials plus reporting.
- Note
- Best-effort analysis: this explainer relies on a mix of primary materials and trusted secondary sources. Official filings and opinions remain authoritative.
- Checked
- Sep 3, 2026
- Method
- Methodology