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Bloomberg.com: Exclusive: "Perelman Sues Late Wife's Family Over Her Inheritance (Update2)

By David Voreacos
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Perelman Sues Late Wife's Family Over Her Inheritance (Update2)

By David Voreacos
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July 11 (Bloomberg) -- Billionaire Ronald Perelman has sued the family of his late ex-wife, Claudia Cohen, claiming they cheated her estate and the couple's daughter out of millions of dollars.

Perelman, chairman of Revlon Inc., claims Claudia Cohen's father, Robert, verbally promised her half of his and his wife's estate, once estimated at $100 million. Her brother, James, used ``undue influence'' on their ailing father and incapacitated mother to have those assets transferred to him while they are alive, the complaint states.

Claudia Cohen, once a New York Post gossip columnist, was the second of Perelman's four wives. The case is the latest courtroom drama for Perelman, 65, who waged public divorce battles with his third wife, Democratic fundraiser Patricia Duff, and his fourth wife, actress Ellen Barkin.

``James Cohen took advantage of Claudia Cohen's trust by manipulating his parents and taking their assets for himself, thereby defrauding his late sister,'' according to the April 7 complaint, filed in Hackensack, New Jersey, by Perelman acting as executor of his wife's estate. A state judge on June 20 denied a request by Robert and James Cohen to dismiss the case.

Claudia Cohen died of ovarian cancer in June 2007 at age 56, Perelman says in his complaint. Their nine-year marriage ended in divorce in 1994.

The complaint claims James Cohen, a resident of Alpine, New Jersey, seeks to ``grossly understate'' the value of Claudia's parents' assets, which include Florida real estate and the family stake in Hudson Group, which owns the Hudson News store chain. It sells newspapers, magazines and snacks in airports and railroad stations including Grand Central Terminal in New York.

Sold Majority Stake

Robert and James Cohen have long held shares in Hudson Group, which had $630 million in revenue last year. In December, Boston-based private-equity firm Advent International bought a majority stake. In April, Dufry Group of Basel, Switzerland, bought a 10 percent interest, leaving the Cohens with 20 percent of the company.

``We have been forced to pursue litigation to protect the estate's interests, and we believe the court will uphold our claims,'' said Allan J. Arffa, a Perelman lawyer in the case, which was also filed on behalf of the billionaire's minor daughter Samantha, sole remaining heir to her mother's estate.

Robert Cohen's attorney, Cary Samowitz, didn't return a call seeking comment. James Cohen's attorney, Frank Huttle III, said ``the allegations made are without merit and are contested in every respect.''

`Incompetent'

Perelman claims Claudia Cohen, whom he describes as ``beloved,'' spoke regularly with her parents and felt a connection to Hudson, the business her father owned. They discussed estate planning, and Robert Cohen, a resident of Englewood, New Jersey, promised his daughter half of his estate, according to Perelman's complaint.

``Harriet Cohen, prior to the time she became incompetent, made statements to Claudia Cohen that indicated she shared Robert Cohen's intentions,'' according to the complaint. ``Robert Cohen's promises were made more than once to Claudia Cohen, and were specifically reiterated to her following her divorce.''

While Cohen and her daughter Samantha ``had assets available to her'' from Perelman after her divorce, she ``wanted personally to contribute to her own and her daughter's long-term financial security,'' according to the complaint. The New York Times reported last year that she received an out-of-court settlement of $80 million from Perelman after their divorce.

Sole Control

James Cohen wanted ``sole control'' over Hudson and ``began a campaign'' to assure that his parents ``would leave only minimal assets'' to the estate of Claudia Cohen and her daughter, according to the complaint.

``Knowing that his mother could not interfere with his plans due to her incompetency, James Cohen focused on his father and exercised undue influence over him, taking advantage of the fact that his father was now aged and infirm,'' it states.

Perelman claims James Cohen's actions were ``wanton, willful and malicious.'' His claims include fraudulent conveyance, undue influence and unjust enrichment. The complaint asks the judge to order the undoing of asset transfers and a rewriting of Robert Cohen's will to assure compliance with the verbal promises.

In refusing to dismiss the case, Superior Court Judge Peter Doyne noted that New Jersey passed a law making verbal promises about wills unenforceable after Sept. 1, 1978. He said Perelman would have to prove the promises were made before that date.

`Significant Hurdles'

``To be sure, the plaintiffs face significant hurdles to prevail in such a claim as they bear the burden of establishing, by clear and convincing evidence, the existence of the oral promise,'' Doyne wrote.

Doyne also approved subpoenas by Perelman's lawyers to the Hudson Group and Hudson News Co., based in East Rutherford, New Jersey. He said the documents requested are relevant to Perelman's complaint.

Perelman has filed numerous lawsuits over his business and personal relationships. He won a $1.57 billion jury award against Morgan Stanley over money he lost on the 1998 sale of Coleman Co. to the firm's client, Sunbeam Corp. In December, the Florida Supreme Court upheld a ruling tossing the verdict out.

Perelman also filed a countersuit in state court in New York against Jacques De Vos, a Parisian antique furniture dealer who sued the billionaire for failing to pay for more than $1 million in art objects and furniture. Perelman claimed the dealer and an antiques specialist, Giraud Inc., deliberately sold a fake dining-room table passed off as authentic Art Deco-style furniture. Court records show the case was settled May 9.

Renamed Building

In March of this year, Perelman drew criticism from faculty and students at the University of Pennsylvania, when he renamed a building, Logan Hall, after his wife. Perelman received the naming rights when he donated $20 million to the university for the renovation of Logan hall and two other buildings in 1995.

Both Claudia Cohen and Perelman are graduates of the Ivy League college in Philadelphia.

The New Jersey case is Estate of Claudia L. Cohen v. Robert Cohen and James S. Cohen, BER-C-134-08, Superior Court of New Jersey, Bergen County (Hackensack).

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To contact the reporter on this story: David Voreacos in Hackensack, New Jersey, at dvoreacos@bloomberg.net.
Last Updated: July 11, 2008 12:12 EDT