A federal judge, calling civil contempt a rarity, ruled that Argentina was in contempt of court on Monday for openly defying his orders requiring that U.S. hedge funds holding Argentine bonds be paid the roughly $1.5 billion they are owed if the majority of the South American nation’s bondholders are paid interest on their bonds.
Southern District Judge Thomas Griesa made the announcement this week, after a lawyer for U.S. hedge funds led by billionaire hedge fund investor Paul Singer’s NML Capital Ltd. argued that Argentina has defied Griesa’s court orders for more than a year.
