By Cherrie A.E. Villahermosa
Variety News Staff

THE Supreme Court has denied a lawyer and a law firm’s motion for a writ of mandamus in a case involving the Bank of Saipan.
The high court said Daniel E. Martens and Moseley Martens LLP failed to overcome the presumption of untimeliness.
Martens is one of the lawyers of Moseley Martens LLP, which is based in Dallas, Texas.
The justices stated that the motion should have been filed within days not weeks of the order in question.
The suit in question is the Bank of Saipan’s attempt to recoup funds that were lost due to alleged fraud during the acquisition of two credit card processing companies in Abilene, Texas.
Moseley Martens, along with Bert Douglas Montgomery and Michael Wilson and others, were sued by the bank.
The bank said Wilson improperly obtained a $5 million loan from the bank with the assistance of Moseley Martens.
On Nov, 7, 2005, Superior Court Judge Juan T. Lizama denied the law firm’s motion to dismiss the lawsuit, saying that Moseley Martens had sufficient contacts with the CNMI to warrant personal jurisdiction.
The law firm moved for reconsideration which the trial court denied on Oct. 18, 2006. On Dec, 6, 2006, or almost 50 days later, the law firm filed the petition for a writ of mandamus in the Supreme Court.