AN ACT RELATIVE TO LIABILITY ON FOREIGN ACCOUNTS.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court assembled, and by the authority of the same, as follows:
Chapter 167D of the General Laws is hereby amended by adding the following section:-
Section 36. Notwithstanding the provisions of any general or special law to the contrary, a bank, a federal bank or a Massachusetts branch as defined in section 1 of chapter 167, shall not be required to repay any deposit made at a branch of such bank, federal bank or Massachusetts branch located in a foreign country, or any deposit made with any of the foregoing in the currency of a foreign country if repayment of such deposit or the use of such assets denominated in said foreign currency is prevented, prohibited or otherwise blocked due to (a) an act of war, insurrection or civil strife; or (b) any action by a foreign government or instrumentality, or authority asserting governmental, military or police power of any kind, whether such authority be recognized as a defacto or de jure government, or by any entity, political or revolutionary movement or otherwise that usurps, supervenes or otherwise materially impairs the normal operation of civil authority; or (c) the closure of such foreign branch in order to prevent, in the reasonable judgment of the bank, harm to the bank's employees or property.
The obligation to repay any such deposit shall not be transferred to and may not be enforced against any other branch of such bank, federal bank or Massachusetts branch.
Prior to the opening of any account for a retail customer that is subject to this section and with respect to any such account in existence on the effective date of this section, upon said effective date, such bank, federal bank or Massachusetts branch shall disclose to the prospective account holder the effect of the provisions of this section. Such bank, federal bank or Massachusetts branch shall also disclose to all current account holders the effect of the provisions of this section. Any such bank, federal bank or Massachusetts branch which fails to provide such disclosure shall not be entitled to avail itself of the provisions of this section.