A mistress of the late cardboard entrepreneur and billionaire Richard Pratt has reportedly been denied access to part of his estate.
The ruling comes after a lengthy battle between the former escort, Madison Ashton, and Pratt’s estate. Pratt died three years ago.
According to reports, the New South Wales Supreme Court has rejected Ashton’s bid for access to the Pratt estate, saying her stated agreement with Pratt was not “enforceable and binding”.
She claimed that Pratt promised her an annual income of $500,000, a Mercedes-Benz and $2.5 million trust funds for her two children in exchange for working as his mistress. She later claimed that Pratt went back on the deal – the catalyst for the suit.
But Justice Paul Brereton ruled that while Ashton and Pratt may have had a verbal agreement, this doesn’t mean there was a solid contract.
Ashton has now been ordered to pay the Pratts’ legal costs, which are expected to be in the tens of thousands.
The case contained a number of anecdotes about Ashton and Pratt, including details of another argument between Ashton and a separate mistress, Shari-Lea Hitchcock.
Hitchcock filed documents in the Supreme Court last year, according to several reports, after stating she intended to contest Pratt’s will. She is still waiting to appear in court.
It was also revealed that Ashton signed a document in 2005 that barred her from claims against the family. Justice Brereton found Ashton accepted $100,000 in compensation, and that she was aware of what she was signing, despite her claims.
Patrick Stafford is a freelance journalist and a former deputy editor of SmartCompany.
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