Family feud sparks succession battle at Polish tycoon’s business empire

[Special thanks to Joel C. Dobris (Professor of Law, UC Davis School of Law) for bringing this article to my attention.]

Poland’s biggest media succession battle erupted not in a boardroom but on a yacht off Italy’s Amalfi Coast, during a birthday trip for Zygmunt Solorz, the billionaire founder of one of the country’s largest television broadcasters.

Instead of celebrating Solorz turning 68, the family holiday descended into a heated argument pitting Solorz and Justyna Kulka, who had recently become his fourth wife, against his three children from earlier marriages. 

Just before travelling to the Mediterranean in August 2024, Solorz met his children in Warsaw and allegedly handed them control over his assets.

Once at sea, “his wife started kind of yelling at us and being quite unpleasant to us as a family, to me and my siblings”, Solorz’s son, Piotr Żak, said in an interview with the Financial Times.

“I think that where it really went wrong is when she all of a sudden saw this [succession plan] and was like: I lost control.”

The family feud, which has since spilled out into court in Poland as well as in Liechtenstein, Cyprus and the US, has drawn comparisons with the HBO drama Succession.

It has also shed some light on the convoluted structure of the family’s business empire, which also includes a mobile phone operator and energy holdings ranging from coal mines to wind farms.

At the heart of the dispute is whether Solorz can revoke documents that transferred allegedly irrevocable control to his children of two foundations that hold his key assets in Liechtenstein.

Solorz argues he was deceived by them, but the three siblings insist Kulka instead pushed him to reverse a succession plan long in the making.

In May, a Liechtenstein court dismissed Solorz’s attempt to invalidate the transfer and appointed an independent trust administrator. Solorz appealed against this decision and a verdict on this appeal is expected this month.

Solorz, who is a resident of Liechtenstein, argued there was “a long-planned attempted coup” by his children, according to the recent Liechtenstein court ruling seen by the FT.
But the Liechtenstein judge found “neither a significant fundamental error nor fraudulent intent” behind the signing process, which was certified by Solorz’s long-standing notary.

The Polish billionaire “was described by all witnesses and parties as a strong-willed and assertive person who does not allow resistance and cannot be pressured, and there is no evidence to suggest that the applicant’s capacity to make judgments or act was impaired”, the judge wrote.

“The fact that he may have regretted the statements the next day, for whatever reason, is another matter.” 

If Solorz loses the Liechtenstein appeal, Żak said he was hopeful the broader legal fight would also come to an end, as other claims hinge on who controls the foundations.

For more information see Raphael Minder “Family feud sparks succession battle at Polish tycoon’s business empire,” The Financial Times, December 4, 2025.