An 80-year-old billionaire, who’s also a descendant of the Hermès luxury design house, is planning to adopt his 51-year-old gardener, to whom he will bequeath his fortune.
The Tribune de Genève reports that Nicolas Puech, who doesn’t have a spouse or children, will leave around half of his $11.5 billion fortune and real estate portfolio to his unnamed gardener. Puech has apparently already given the man a property in Morocco and a villa in Switzerland, altogether worth almost $6 million.
Puech regards his “former gardener and handyman” as his “adopted son.” The man is married to a woman from Spain and has two children.
Puech handing his money over to his gardener also presents another problem, as he had already committed his fortune to the Isocrates Foundation, which he created to protect and promote public debate. It seems the organization is now poised for a legal battle if he does attempt to cancel his inheritance contract.
“From a legal standpoint, the abrupt and unilateral annulment of a succession agreement appears void and unfounded,” the foundation said in a statement, per The Guardian. “The foundation has opposed this move while leaving the door open to discussion with its founder and president.”
Puech is a fifth-generation descendant of Thierry Hermès, whose luxury brand is now worth $220 billion. Puech has a contentious history with his family, beginning in 2014 when the luxury conglomerate LVHM obtained a large stake in Hermès. He subsequently left the company’s board.
“He resigned because he has felt for several years beleaguered by members of his family, who have attacked him on several fronts, not only regarding LVMH,” Puech’s spokesperson at the time, per the New York Post.
Puech is currently one of Switzerland’s wealthiest citizens and the 162nd richest person in the world. He owns around five percent of Hermès.
