Barclays Bank of New York v. Goldman

In Barclays Bank of New York v. Goldman, 517 F. Supp. 403, 414 (S.D.N.Y. 1981), plaintiffs sued defendants as guarantors of debts incurred by the third-party defendant known as DDIL. 517 F. Supp. at 406. The defendants commenced a third-party action for indemnity against DDIL and two individuals affiliated with the DDIL. Id One of those individuals ("Moshe") was an officer and controlling shareholder of DDIL. Id at 407-408. In the third-party complaint, the defendants alleged that they signed the guarantee agreement only on Moshe's personal assurance that all of DDIL's debts would be paid and on his oral promise that he would indemnify them against all claims asserted by plaintiff. Id at 408. The defendants also alleged that Moshe orally promised one of the defendants that DDIL or Moshe would reimburse the defendant for any of DDIL's debts to other creditors that defendant paid out of his personal funds. Id. The Barclays court held that 1) Moshe's alleged promise to indemnify defendants for becoming guarantors, and 2) Moshe's alleged promise to reimburse the individual defendant for his payment of DDIL's debts, were not within the Statute of Frauds. Art 415.