THE CELEBRITY photographer accused of exploiting his relationship with L’Oréal heiress Liliane Bettencourt is to keep gifts from her worth about €300 million under a settlement that brings an end to the long-running Bettencourt family feud.
François-Marie Banier was facing trial after being accused by Ms Bettencourt’s daughter of exploiting the elderly woman’s fragile state of mind to obtain gifts estimated to be worth up to €1 billion. The dispute led to an official investigation into Ms Bettencourt’s tax affairs and a political scandal that implicated former labour minister Eric Woerth and the ruling UMP party.
Lawyers for Ms Bettencourt’s only daughter, Françoise Meyers-Bettencourt, announced this week that she had dropped her legal case against Mr Banier after she and her mother – who had not spoken for more than a year – had settled their differences.
The terms of that settlement emerged yesterday, with Mr Banier’s lawyer, Pierre Cornut-Gentille, confirming his client had agreed to accept no further gifts from Ms Bettencourt and to be written out of two life insurance policies benefiting him. He said Mr Banier would retain those gifts he had received, reported to consist mainly of valuable artworks. Ms Bettencourt’s lawyer, Pascal Wilhelm, later estimated the value of the gifts at €300 million.
“The decision that Françoise and I have taken offers me hope. It meets my wish to see the family united,” Ms Bettencourt said in the joint statement with her daughter. With the reconciliation, Ms Meyers-Bettencourt has dropped legal action seeking to have her mother declared unfit to manage her €17 billion fortune.
Ms Bettencourt (88) will remain president of the holding company Tethys, which represents the family interests in L’Oréal, while her daughter’s husband, Jean-Pierre Meyers, will become chief executive, and their sons will join the board.
The Bettencourt family’s reconciliation brings little immediate relief for Mr Woerth, who was removed from cabinet by President Nicolas Sarkozy last month amid allegations he was involved in illegal financing of the UMP, and influence-peddling.
Four investigations are continuing into the Bettencourt case, but Mr Sarkozy says he expects Mr Woerth to be fully cleared and to return to government.