Judge sets speed-reading record...
Fri Jun 16, 2006 10:24 AM ET
MOSCOW (Reuters) - A Russian judge considering the merits of adding billions of dollars of back tax claims against stricken oil firm YUKOS has set a new speed reading record, the firm said in a wry comment Thursday.
YUKOS said a judge in Moscow's arbitration court decided to include $13 billion of back-tax claims in YUKOS's creditors' list after taking just 15 minutes to consider 127,000 pages of information submitted by Russian tax officials.
"The judge came back after 15 minutes and said ... the 127,000 pages were useful in the argument for the case," YUKOS spokeswoman Claire Davidson told Reuters. "We'd like to congratulate the judge on a new world speed-reading record."
YUKOS has said its tax troubles, with a total bill of about $33 billion, are a politically motivated attempt to destroy it, with courts that take their cue from the Kremlin.
The judge could not be immediately reached for comment.
