Rival brides who married same man in Vegas in court battle over millionaire’s ‘plundered’ £1.8m estate
A beautician is suing her dead husband’s secret wife, claiming she “looted” her £1.8million estate to stop the man she married in Las Vegas from taking his fortune.
Millionaire accountant and real estate mogul James Dinsdale died of cancer in October 2020 at the age of 55, leaving Margaret Dinsdale and dentist Dr. A fortune remains at the center of a bitter court battle between Victoria Fowell and Victoria Fowell. They both married him in Las Vegas ceremonies just five years apart.
When his most recent partner, beautician Miss Dinsdale, married him in 2017, following James’ death, he was still legally married to cosmetic dentist Dr. She was shocked to learn that she was married to Fowell; their marriage became “void” and she was left with no automatic inheritance rights.
She only discovered that James had a secret wife when she began settling his affairs under the assumption that, as his next of kin, she would inherit his fortune.
Five years ago, in 2012, James met Dr. on the same street in Las Vegas. She had married Fowell but had never been able to divorce him; Thus, under intestacy laws, James became the heir to his £1.8 million fortune.
Ms Dinsdale’s rights as a “wife” were formally recognized by a judge in July and she is now making a significant claim for part of her fortune under the Inheritance Act.
But last week he returned to the High Court in London and Dr. Fowell allegedly “looted” James’s £1.8 million estate to prevent him from taking his fortune, and now Dr. He claimed Fowell tried to “freeze” all of his assets.
His lawyer, Gideon Roseman, told Mr. Judge Mann, Dr. He said Fowell “looted” the property and treated it “as if he had the sole right to it”; these claims were strongly denied by the dentist.
The court heard that accountant and Second World War history expert James Dinsdale set up a successful property development business in central London before his death.
In 2012, dentist Dr. who lives in St Albans and specializes in “cosmetic smile aesthetics”. He married Fowell, but the couple never divorced and he married Margaret Dinsdale in 2017.
Margaret and James met and became friends in 2008, then began a “romantic relationship” in 2014 and set up home together the following year.
Margaret’s wedding took place at the Chapel of Flowers on Las Vegas Boulevard; Dr Fowell had married James five years earlier, 600 meters away, at the Little White Wedding Chapel.
But when they married in 2017, Margaret had no idea James was still married, only finding out after he died of cancer.
And since he didn’t make a will, James’ money went to Dr. according to the rules of intestacy. It would be split between Fowell and his 28-year-old son, William Dinsdale.
Margaret says she married James “in good faith” with the understanding that her marriage to Dr Fowell had ended some time before their wedding.
She cared for him “24 hours a day” during his battle with terminal cancer, quitting her job to become his primary caregiver as a housewife while he provided for her financially.
Margaret’s lawyer, Mr Roseman, told the court his client was living on universal credit and raising a young child, while Dr Roseman also told the court that his client was living on universal credit and raising a young child. He noted Fowell’s relative prosperity, such as running a successful dental practice and owning his own property.
Margaret is now trying to claim a share of James’ £1.8 million fortune under the Inheritance Act 1975, she told the court. He said it was essential that Fowell was prevented from “dispersing” money from Margaret’s estate to ensure something remained in the pot.
Urging Mr Justice Mann to grant the freezing order, he explained: “Should the order not be granted, the plaintiff will be left with a judgment on paper. Dr Fowell will have successfully plundered the estate and will undoubtedly have concealed or dispersed both the assets in the estate and his personal assets.”
The barrister said Dr Fowell had spent much of his fortune managing James’ estate, with only £17,000 left in his lawyers’ account and the whereabouts of the remaining assets were largely a secret.
“Dr Fowell, as the personal representative of Mr Dinsdale’s estate, plundered the estate, breached all court orders to provide information and documents relating to it – despite a criminal caution – and admitted to paying himself approximately £400,000 of the estate’s money,” he said.
He added that the dentist “treated the estate as if he had the same right and now… he is trying to hide the money he received from the inheritance.”
She had sold two of the properties left by James – a pub and a country house – for a total value of just £600,000, although their actual value was probably up to £1.5 million, she continued.
Lawyer, Dr. He claimed the “possible explanation” for Fowell selling at a discounted price was that he “wanted to get hold of the money as quickly as possible in order to defeat the plaintiff’s claim.”
However, Dr Fowell’s lawyers opposed the granting of the freezing order, rejecting any attempt to hide James’ assets, stating that he also had a young child to care for and had a responsibility to care for his elderly parents.
Dr Fowell claims some of the money from the estate was spent on arranging accommodation at his parents’ home.
After spending half a day in court, Mr Justice Mann, Dr. He refused to impose a full freeze, saying it could have a dire and disproportionate impact on Fowell’s dental business.
But he granted a more limited injunction, freezing his property assets, or stocks, as well as his main personal assets, preventing any sale of his home and the dental practice he owned.
Dr Fowell was also ordered to prepare accounts “detailing what happened to the assets seized by the estate”.
The judge noted that it was unclear where all the money from James’ estate had gone, noting that although all of his properties had now been sold, only two had a known purchase price.
“There is arguably a good case to be made to say that Dr Fowell was at fault and distributed the estate in his favor in the face of a claim under the Inheritance Act,” he said.
Announcing his decision, the judge told the court: “I make this decision because it is not clear where the money from the estate is going and it is possible that there may be properties that represent assets in the estate but have not yet been disclosed.”
Margaret’s lawyer, Mohaned Salah, commented after the hearing: “We welcome this decision, which we believe will bring Margaret a significant step closer to concluding these cases and allow her to mourn the loss of the late Mr. Dinsdale, whom she truly believed to be her husband.
“Margaret suffered both mentally and financially throughout this period, and her health deteriorated rapidly.”
