Dismissal of the claim by the real estate company Rue de Lausanne 51 SA against the Union of Swiss Banks

Facts

The real estate company Rue de Lausanne 51 SA, in Fribourg, acquired a building in 1932. In 1947, Edouard Romanens purchased the shares of this company from Guillaume de Weck. In 1947, de Weck obtained a power of attorney to establish a mortgage of 100,000 francs on the company's property. The corresponding mortgage bonds were deposited with the Union of Swiss Banks (UBS). In 1953, the company filed an action for debt release against the UBS concerning these bonds. The Civil Court of Sarine and the Court of Appeal of Fribourg granted the company's claim. The UBS appealed to the Federal Tribunal.

Considerations

The Federal Tribunal upholds the appeal of the UBS. It considers that the UBS, as the holder of the mortgage bonds, has standing to assert the rights incorporated therein, even if it is acting on behalf of the owner of the securities. The fact that the UBS has declared that it is not the owner of the bonds does not change its legitimacy, as the holder of a bearer security is presumed to be the beneficiary, whether by virtue of ownership…