Huguette Clark–Big Estate, Small Cash Flow

As I have previously blogged about, there is alegal battle surrounding Huguette Clark’s $400 million estate. She may have asizable estate, but The New York Post suggests that she did not have much cashflow. 

Since Clark spent the last two decades of her lifein Manhattan hospitals playing with dolls and watching cartoons, it isquestionable how much she actually understood about her financialsituation.  Her advisers seemed toauthorize more money to go out than she actually had, and this threatened to depleteher assets.  About ten years beforeher death, her accountant began to urge Clark to sell her assets to pay debtand medical bills.  All the while,however, he continued to underreport and underpay Clark’s tax liabilities.

Gift-giving, especially to her private nurseHadassah Peri, accounted for much of Clark’s money.  Within the first year of moving to an apartment, she gaveout $375,000 in gifts.  Despite herpotential mental incapacity, as evidenced by her hospital residence, and herchildlike habits, her advisers never checked her mental capacity. 

Clark’s distant relatives are now contesting herwill, and the Manhattan District Attorney’s and the state Attorney General’soffices are looking into the way her advisers handled her affairs.

See Isabel Vincent andKathianne Boniello, Reclusivecopper Heiress was Cash Poor, Say Relatives In Court Fight Over Will, The New York Post, Aug. 19,2012. 

Special thanks to Jim Hillhouse (Professional LegalMarketing (PLM, Inc.)) for bringing this article to my attention.