Athens, 23.3.2009
Acquittal of employees of the Athens branch of the University of La Verne

In March 2009 Kelemenis & Co. achieved the acquittal of the defendants in a criminal case for the issue of a bounced check of a substantial amount. Although Greek law provides that the offense of the issue of bounced checks is punishable only if it is willful, Greek courts rarely exonerate issuers of bounced checks and, in most cases, treat their criminal responsibility as an objective matter. The acquittal of the clients of Kelemenis & Co. was another episode relating to the sudden cease of operations of the Greek branch of the University of La Verne in September 2004. The clients of Kelemenis & Co. were employees of the local entity (Somateo) and had the authority to sign on behalf of the Somateo. Their acquittal follows decision no 7262/2008 of the Multi-member Court of First Instance of Athens, which accepted the action of “La Verne College”, represented by Kelemenis & Co., against the University of La Verne. With said decision the corporate veil of the Somateo was lifted and it was acknowledged that the franchising contracts between the University and the local legal entity were fictitious and aimed at construing the alleged independence of the two entities in order for the University to avoid the financial liabilities of its branch.

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