Armenian Groups Receive Payments

Three local Armenian civic organizations received $333,333 each Monday as part of a $20-million settlement of a lawsuit by New York Life Insurance Co.

In all, $3 million was split among nine Armenian organizations, including the Armenian Church of North America Western Diocese in Burbank, the Western Prelacy of the Armenian Apostolic Church in Los Angeles and the Armenian Educational Foundation in Glendale.

“The organizations that were selected were charities that helped people like my grandparents get started, get a new life, feed them, clothe them,” said Brian S. Kabateck, an attorney of Armenian descent who worked on the case. “Today was a way to repay them for the way they helped Armenians who arrived in this country after the genocide.”

About 1.5 million Armenians died at the hands of Turks between 1915 and 1923, and tens of thousands were deported.

The lawsuit, filed by heirs of Armenian genocide victims, accused the insurance company of failing to honor valid claims. Of the remaining $17 million, $4 million was allotted for attorney’s fees, $2 million for administrative fees and $11 million for individual claims.

Any unclaimed money will be distributed to Armenian charities, said Paul Krekorian, a member of the three-person board appointed by California Insurance Commissioner John Garamendi in late September to evaluate claims.

About 770 claims were submitted since the settlement, but not all of them have been validated, according to its administrator.

The claims typically range from $15,000 to $20,000, according to Kabateck.

New York Life published a list of more than 2,400 policies issued to Armenians in the Ottoman Empire before 1915 that were not paid.

Descendants who haven’t already filed a claim for a portion of the settlement must do so by March 16.