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Bank of America shocked by court's quick decision

Bank of America Corp said a Dutch court's decision to block its US$21 billion purchase of LaSalle Bank was "shocking" in its speed, questioning in court papers made public on Friday how it could issue an injunction so soon after hearing arguments in the case.

The bank submitted its appeal to the Dutch high court last month, but did not make the document public until Friday.

"It must further be noted that it strikes Bank of America as shocking that an injunction such as the one ordered, with the effect as described, is possible after an expedited hearing ... [held] one day after the initiating request had been filed," the appeal said.

The fate of LaSalle has become one of the key issues in the larger battle over its parent, ABN Amro.

The largest bank in the Netherlands has a pair of offers on the table -- a friendly all-share bid from Britain's Barclays PLC worth around US$84.4 billion and a hostile bid from a three-bank consortium led by Royal Bank of Scotland PLC worth about US$95.5 billion.

The sale of LaSalle, ABN Amro's US unit, to the Bank of America was widely seen as a poison pill measure aimed at keeping other bidders from competing with the Barclays' offer. The bid from the group led by RBS is contingent on it being halted, since RBS wants LaSalle.

The lower Dutch court froze the sale of LaSalle to Bank of America last month, ruling that ABN Amro's management overstepped its bounds by attempting to sell it without shareholder approval. Both ABN Amro and Bank of America appealed, and a ruling from the Dutch Supreme Court is expected early next month.

"The sale of LaSalle by ABN Amro to Bank of America is not in any way an anti-takeover measure," Bank of America said in its appeal, adding "ABN Amro merely aimed to obtain the highest price."

The appeal argues that even if ABN Amro's shareholders needed to approve the sale, the lower court's decision wrongly penalizes Bank of America for a possible mistake on the part of ABN Amro's management.

"We feel Bank of America's position as a party that acted in good faith has not been widely understood," said Scott Silvestri, a spokesman for the US' second largest bank by assets.
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