Judge Delays Deposition Ruling in Solutia Case

New York, NY, February 15, 2008--A federal judge has delayed ruling on whether to compel Citigroup Inc. Chief Executive Vikram Pandit to answer questions about the bank's decision to back out of Solutia Inc.'s $2 billion bankruptcy-exit financing.

Judge Prudence Carter Beatty of the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Manhattan said Solutia's attorneys need to talk to executives from the other two lenders involved in the financing, Goldman Sachs Group Inc. and Deutsche Bank AG , before she'll rule on whether Pandit should be questioned.

The judge said she isn't certain Pandit has useful knowledge of the deal.

Solutia wants to depose Pandit about his role in the decision to back out of the financing as Solutia prepares for a Feb. 21 trial aimed at forcing the banks to follow through with exit financing.

Pandit said he wasn't involved in the decision to back out of the financing.

However, Solutia said its financial adviser, Todd Snyder of Rothschild Inc., was told by a Citigroup attorney that the decision came from Pandit.

The Citigroup lawyer denies the charge.

The banks are also trying to stop questions about their history with a contract provision that is at the heart of the fight.

Dubbed a "market MAC" clause, the contract provision allows parties to back out of a deal if market conditions change significantly.