Judge delays UBS hearing in Miami

MIAMI, July 13 (UPI) -- A federal judge in Miami postponed a hearing over a lawsuit designed to force Swiss bank UBS to reveal names of clients that may be hiding assets from the IRS.

Judge Alan Gold rescheduled the hearing for Aug. 3, The New York Times reported Monday.

The hearing was postponed to give the U.S. and Swiss governments time to arrive at a diplomatic solution.

The Internal Revenue Service contends the bank has allowed U.S. taxpayers to secret away assets that are subject to U.S. tax laws. This spring, UBS agreed to settle a criminal case with a $780 million fine.

Since the settlement, the Swiss government has asserted that the bank's revealing 52,000 client names would be a violation of the country's bank secrecy laws.

UBS spokeswoman Karina Byrne said the postponement would allow for a "potential resolution" of the issue.

Both sides had requested the delay. But the U.S. Justice Department has said the bank had "not yet faced all the consequences of its illegal conduct in the United States."

The Justice Department is considering financial sanctions against the bank or a separate indictment, the newspaper said.

To resolve the matter "a significant number" of client names would have to be revealed, the Justice Department said.