Lehman opposes NY Comptroller's motion on trustee

Jan 5 (Reuters) - Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc (LEHMQ.PK) said the New York State Comptroller's motion to appoint a trustee or an examiner was baseless and without evidence, according to court filings.

In November, New York State Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli filed a motion in a U.S bankruptcy court in New York, seeking the appointment of a trustee or an examiner with expanded powers to investigate Lehman and its former and current management.

In documents filed with the court, Lehman said the motion was "fatally defective" and the Comptroller had "resorted to unfounded accusations" against its management and former Chief Executive Richard Fuld in particular.

A representative for the Comptroller's office was not immediately available for comment.

The Comptroller had failed to recognise that Lehman "was a victim of a financial tsunami that was beyond its control," the company said.

"The Comptroller is wearing blinders," the filing said.

"The pertinent facts are of no concern to him. He ignores actual facts including that the Chairman of the Federal Reserve System and the United States Treasury Department, as well as others, failed to foresee the oncoming financial tsunami, as did most of the economists and financial analysts."

A hearing on the motion was scheduled on Dec. 3, but was adjourned till Jan. 14.

Lehman filed for bankruptcy protection in September, 2008, in the largest U.S. bankruptcy filing in history, listing more than $600 billion in assets. (Reporting by Santosh Nadgir in Bangalore; Editing by Vinu Pilakkott)