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Daily Mail
03-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Daily Mail
The ugly past behind Salma Hayek and Linda Evangelista's happily blended family: Supermodel took fashion tycoon François-Henri Pinault to court after she fell pregnant following whirlwind romance
Linda Evangelista and her ex François-Henri Pinault were the image of harmonious co-parents as they beamed for photos at their son's high school graduation this week - in a stark contrast of to their bitter court battle 13 years ago. The luxury retailing giant heir, 63, has four children, one of whom he shares with the supermodel after a brief relationship in the noughties. Augustin, 18, is just months older than the businessman's daughter Valentina - who he has with wife Salma Hayek. While the blended family has been known to get on well now - with the former partners even enjoying Thanksgiving together - only years earlier, a child support feuds saw familial tensions brewing. In a 2012 trial, Pinault admitted he had broken up with the Linda after discovering she was pregnant four months into their relationship. 'I didn't even know her,' he said. Meanwhile, Evangelista reportedly asked for a staggering $46,000 a month for their son's care. At the time, her lawyer also claimed the Frenchman, who has an estimated net worth of $17.5 billion, had demanded the supermodel have an abortion as he did not want the child. The pair eventually come to an agreement in their battle over Augustin - then five - over the phone. The surprise settlement, revealed by a source to The New York Post, came three days into the court scrap that revealed some of the uglier claims about the former couple's four-month relationship. It is not clear whether Evangelista won the hefty sum he expected Pinault to pay for their child, with the source only claiming he had 'gone a long way toward meeting those original demands'. During the court battle, her lawyer William Beslow had also argued that 'Augie' deserves a lifestyle similar to that of Pinault's daughter with Hayek, born just months after his son. As chief executive of PPR, the conglomerate that owns Yves Saint Laurent, Gucci and Bottega Veneta, at the time, he was earning some $5million a year. He would also have been spending $50,000 a month just on the taxes, upkeep and loan payments for the $12million Los Angeles home he put in trust for his daughter, Valentina, the Post reported. And taking the witness stand, he revealed he spent a staggering $260,000 on gifts for himself in 2010 - but could not remember what he had bought his son or how much he had spent on him. Despite his wealth, Pinault had criticised Evangelista for her outlandish demands, suggesting the $46,000 a month is in fact for 'mom support'. She had maintained she was modelling or working on her image at all hours of the day. The seeming rift is a far cry from the warm relations Augustin now appears to share with both his parents and step-mother Salma. Linda, 60, reunited with François and his wife as they came together to celebrate her son this week. The supermodel looked every inch the proud mother as she posed with her lookalike son, 18, on his big day. Taking to Instagram on Monday, she uploaded a slew of snaps which showed Augustin proudly posing with his diploma before celebrating with a personalised cake and enjoying a cigar with his billionaire father. In one sweet snap, the graduate hugged his stepmother Salma, 58, and mother Linda as they posed alongside his father. 'Then this happened. ♥️✨I'm one proud momma,' she wrote. 'Blessed blessed blessed…' Linda and François briefly dated from September 2005 until January 2006. The Kering CEO started dating From Dusk Till Dawn star Salma in April that year, when he was later informed Linda was pregnant with Augustin. In 2007, Salma and François announced their engagement and welcomed their daughter Valentina in September. When Augustin was first born, Linda initially kept his paternity a secret - but the truth emerged following their child support dispute. Linda previously gave an insight into her co-parenting relationship with Salma in an interview with Vogue. She explained that she spends time with Salma and her ex during the holiday season. However, one Thanksgiving, she was ill and not able to join the festivities. 'I was sick at Thanksgiving. And Salma got on the plane with her daughter, came here, and made Thanksgiving dinner,' she explained. Linda then humorously revealed she had given Salma an 'eclectic wish list' for what she wanted to eat. Big family: Salma is stepmom to three of her billionaire husband's children — Francois, 25, Augie, 16, and Mathilde, 21 — and the husband and wife share daughter Valentina, 15 'I wanted her Mexican chicken with truffled potatoes. And she spent the day in the kitchen and cooked it herself. No help.' 'The kids helped her at the end. She made a feast - a beautiful, beautiful meal. I had told her that I wasn't going to have Thanksgiving; I wasn't feeling well. And she said, "Oh yes you are: I am coming." And poof, she was here.' Linda also opened up about her son and wanting to give him a 'normal upbringing' - despite her celebrity status. She revealed both she and Augustin sit in the nosebleed seats at events after offers for front row seats at venues at Madison Square Garden dwindled down. 'Now we buy our tickets and we sit with the fans in nosebleed. We're fine with that. I wanted to have a very normal upbringing for my child.' It seems the family has been enjoying a blended upbringing for years, with Salma in 2021 posting what appeared to be vacation photos featuring Augustin. He had even made rep carpet appearances alongside his step-mother and half-sister. Meanwhile, Salma and Linda have made it clear there is no bad blood between them. In a 2023 Instagram post, Salma gushed about the supermodel's new book - Linda Evangelista Photographed by Steven Meisel - in a video with her husband's ex. 'For all of you who are wondering what to give for a Christmas present, I have a prefect one. This amazing book is the perfect gift for absolutely everyone especially if you like photography or fashion or if you just like my Linda!' The duo then laughed as they enjoyed a warm hug with one another. It's not the only time the pair have exchanged kind words on social media. In October, while attending the 2024 Innovator Awards, which pal Penelope Cruz, Linda and Augustin were also at, Salma posted a carousel of photos captioned: 'Penelope & Linda, thank you so much for your magical words, for celebrating me, for loving me, for supporting me, and for being a pillar of strength in my life. @penelopecruzoficial @lindaevangelista.' Last year, she joined Linda and 38 other A-listers for a legendary Vogue cover - which Salma brand a show of 'sisterhood'.
Times
19-05-2025
- Health
- Times
I need mother's home — and so do my support dogs, woman tells sisters
An alternative therapist who specialised in energy wavelength treatments is locked in a court battle with her sisters over their inheritance and two emotional support dogs. Agnes Duggan, the mother, died nearly seven years ago, aged 78, and bequeathed her £420,000 home to her three daughters: Sharon, Ann and Brenda Duggan. The youngest sibling, Sharon, 49, had lived with her mother, caring for her in the last years of her life. However, she is now attempting to block her two older sisters from their share of the estate, claiming that she needs to stay in the house for life with her therapeutic pets because she is too 'noise sensitive' to live in a flat. The former NHS medical secretary is suing Brenda, a 55-year-old alternative
The Sun
19-05-2025
- The Sun
Widow facing bankruptcy in bitter war with neighbour over £300 privacy fence that ‘ruined her life'
A WIDOW is facing bankruptcy in a bitter war with her neighbour over a £300 privacy fence that "ruined her life". The 79-year-old said she's been left "completely destroyed" after a lengthy court battle with her neighbour Alexander Miles left her £20,000 in debt. 5 5 Muriel Middle, a retired childminder and beautician from Pontyclun South Wales, said her daughter has since had to buy her property to save her from bankruptcy. The dispute started when Alexander built an extension in his back garden and removed part of the fence between the two houses so he could access a drainpipe. Muriel insisted the drainpipe was on her land and instructed a contractor to come and fill the gaps in the fence she said belonged to her. Alexander wrote to the retired child minder threatening her with court action over the interference, which he said had left him unable to access the drainpipe. The panels Muriel had had put in, he argued, were also not in keeping with the rest of the fence. After unsuccessfully trying to resolve the issue themselves, the row was brought before Cardiff Civil Justice court last summer, where Alexander sought damage repayments. Muriel argued the panels provided privacy and security but according to Alexander's solicitors, the work carried out by the childminder's contractor could have weakened the foundations of the fence. A hearing later determined the fence the legal property of Alexander. The septuagenarian was ordered to pay £15,000 of his legal costs, which has since grown to £20,000. In a statement read in court and shared with Wales Onlin e, Muriel said: 'How I find myself in court defending myself I do not understand. Shock moment Storage Hunters star drives his CAR at neighbour in war over 'communal' garden "I have done nothing wrong and broken no laws. I've not had the easiest life. "My first daughter and my husband died and I was left to raise my remaining daughter on my own. "As devastating as that was I can honestly say I have never encountered the stress this has put me under.' She later said: 'I've scrimped and saved all my life. I've worked 53 years to make sure I could leave Sam a property without a mortgage and this has forced me into a situation where I've lost that. 'That really sticks in my throat. I've never been in debt in my life to now. I'm so upset about it. "It's left me in such a state. This whole thing has completely destroyed me. I now don't do anything at all.' Alexander said the court's judgement was clear and he did not want to be quoted further. 5
Daily Mail
16-05-2025
- Business
- Daily Mail
London mansion once home to Charles Dickens at centre of £17m court battle between multimillionaire divorcee and her high society bank
A £19million mansion which was once home to Charles Dickens is at the centre of a bitter court battle between a multimillionaire divorcee and her bank. Deborah Fiorentino, 63, the former wife of both Italian aristocrat Giovanni Fiorentino and celebrity British divorce lawyer Raymond 'Jaws' Tooth, could lose her Regent's Park mansion after being sued for not paying her mortgage. The high-flying estate agent took out a £17.85million loan against the Grade I listed mansion, a separate mews house and a third property in Hampstead before running up massive arrears, a court heard. She has now been dragged to court by her lender, Luxembourg-based private bank Banque Havilland, who accuse her of owing them more than £10million. Lawyers for the bank are suing for possession of the house and a judgment for the £10.2million sum, claiming that she has shown that, despite 'supposedly a high net worth individual,' she is simply unable to cover the cost of the mortgage. However, she is fighting the claim on the basis that she has been treated 'unreasonably' by the lender, which she says prevented her from re-financing, costing her millions. The seven-bed house in Hanover Terrace, overlooking Regent's Park boating lake, is where Dickens spent the summer of 1861, around the time he wrote 'Great Expectations.' Designed by Buckingham Palace and Marble Arch neo-classical architect John Nash, it has been recently renovated to feature its own gym and sauna, and is now home to wealthy divorcee Ms Fiorentino. Ms Fiorentino is a former local estate agent, who after setting up her own office built a portfolio of luxury houses in some of London's richest districts. In the early 90s, she married Italian aristocrat Giovanni Fiorentino, father of her two children, living with him between his two large family homes in Naples, while continuing to buy up more expensive houses. One in Hampstead belonged to pioneer plastic surgeon Sir Harold Gillies, while her former home in Frognal, also in Hampstead, was where stars including Peter Sellers and Elizabeth Taylor enjoyed garden parties in the sixties. In 2008 she separated from her second husband, top divorce lawyer Mr Tooth, whose celebrity clients include Irina Abramovich (divorcing Roman Abramovich), Sadie Frost (divorcing Jude Law), Cheryl Barrymore (divorcing Michael Barrymore), and Eimear Montgomerie (divorcing Colin Montgomerie). But representing Banque Havilland at Mayor's and City County Court this week, Michael Walsh KC said Ms Fiorentino had now shown herself unable to pay her debts. She took out the £17.85million five-year loan with the bank in March 2019, secured against the Hanover Terrace house and mews, and the third property in Frognal. But from early 2023, she went on to fail to meet interest payments, he said, telling Judge Nicholas Parfitt that she 'patently cannot afford to repay.' 'The irresistible conclusion here is that she is persistently unable to meet her obligations,' he said. 'She has made no interest payment whatsoever since December 2022 on this loan. 'The reality is that she has had ample time to repay the amounts owed by her and cannot do so.' He said the bank had done what it could to help Ms Fiorentino, delaying interest payments and also its court case after she first defaulted. Ms Fiorentino had claimed several times to be close to selling the house, including once to an unnamed Premier League footballer, but a sale had not got to contract exchange, he said, suggesting it is overpriced. Accusing her of being 'incapable of properly marketing this property,' he said she had initially marketed the Frognal house for a 'wildly over-optimistic' £19.95million, before selling for just over £11million. The proceeds of that were used to pay down the £17.85m loan, but she still owes over £10.2m, said the barrister. 'Ms Fiorentino has also made no meaningful progress in either selling Hanover or refinancing the outstanding loan,' he continued. 'The history of this matter is littered with promises that she is close to securing finance, but it is obvious that she cannot do so. 'This is not through any fault of Banque Havilland. The truth is that Ms Fiorentino cannot sell Hanover because it is overpriced, just as Frognal was overpriced but sold when it was marketed properly.' For Ms Fiorentino, barrister Thomas Rothwell said the house, which 'has always been occupied as her home,' should not be taken away by the bank. He said she should be granted a 'time order' giving her a few extra months to secure finance or sell the house and pay what she owes. However, he also claimed that she had been 'treated unreasonably' by the bank, which had prevented her refinancing and cost her millions in extra outgoings and interest. He said the amount she owes should be reduced by at least £2.45million, meaning at the most she only now owes around £7.81million, not the £10m-plus the bank is claiming. Accusing the bank of taking an 'unnecessarily belligerent attitude,' he said: 'As a result of demonstrably unfair treatment at Banque Havilland's hands, Ms Fiorentino was prohibited from refinancing at the earliest possible opportunity - i.e. mid-2022 - and was therefore forced progressively further into default. 'She thereby incurred additional interest and legal costs which would not have been incurred if she had been fairly treated.' After a day in court, Judge Parfitt reserved his decision on the bank's possession claim until a later date.
