New York Judge to Decide if Citibank and Terra Firma Lawsuit Should be Moved to London (NYSE: C)

A New York-based judge will make a decision as to whether or not to move a case made against Citibank (NYSE: C) to London that has been filed by Terra Firma Capital Partners.

Private equity firm Terra Firma Capital Partners accused Citibank of tricking it into buying EMI Group Ltd. The firm accused Citibank, which Terra Firma had advised on the deal, mislead the firm into believing that another private equity firm, Cerberus Capital Management, was also bidding on the deal. The company confirmed that it would not have placed a bit for the London-based record company if it was not advised of another private equity firm bidding for it.

The lawsuit that Terra Firma has filed against Citibank hopes to recoup billions in lost equity.

Terra Firma purchased EMI Group back in 2007 for $6.2 billion at the height of the leveraged buy-out boom. Citibank was set to act as a lender to EMI and was set to earn substantial fees on the deal. Terra Firm eventually had to write-off half of its EMI investment after the company posted a loss of 1.5 billion GBP in 2009.

Citibank’s lawyers said that documents in the deal indicate that any disputes related to EMI Group should be handled by British Courts.

Former Terra Firma CEO Guy Hands stepped down after the company was forced to take the write-downs.