The death of a wealthy woman has sparked a struggle between her son and pet dogs over a multi-million-dollar inheritance.
In March this year, Gale Persner, a 67-year-old millionaire from Miami, California, passed away. However, the will she left behind shocked everyone: she had bequeathed an estate worth $11.3 million to her three pet dogs! In addition, she left $25 million to seven butlers and bodyguards responsible for taking care of her beloved dogs, while her only son — Brett Carl — received a mere $1 million. Recently, enraged, Brett filed a lawsuit with the court demanding that his mother's will be declared invalid, thus sparking a "heritage battle" between humans and dogs.
$11.3 Million Goes to Pet Dogs
According to reports, Gale Persner, born in 1943, was a super-rich woman from Miami, California. Her father, also named Gale Persner, was a wealthy American businessman and philanthropist. Owning a "rich dad," Gale possessed at least tens of millions of dollars in assets, including multiple properties located in prime areas of California.
It is reported that Brett Carl is Gale's only son, currently working as a film director. Many people assumed that Brett would naturally inherit all of Gale’s fortune. However, when Gale's will was announced recently, everyone was shocked — because Gale had left an estate worth $11.3 million to her three pet dogs, while her only son — Brett — received merely $1 million!
$25 Million Goes to Butlers and Bodyguards
According to reports, during her lifetime, Gale kept three pet dogs, among which she most cherished a female Chihuahua named "Conchita." It is known that Gale's pet dogs were quite famous in the U.S., as several years ago, Gale hired a public relations expert to launch a large-scale publicity campaign, turning her favorite Chihuahua "Conchita" into a TV star, earning her the title of "one of the world's most pampered puppies."
Court documents show that among the $11.3 million estate Gale left to her three pet dogs, she gifted a mansion in Miami Beach valued at $8.3 million to her dearest "Conchita," while the other two pet dogs received a trust fund totaling $3 million. Moreover, the three pet dogs were not the only "winners" in Gale's will — according to court documents, Gale also left $25 million to her seven butlers and bodyguards, authorizing them to continue living in her house for free, with their sole responsibility being — taking care of the three pet dogs!
Giving Diamond Necklaces to Beloved Dogs
In fact, Gale spent lavishly on her three pet dogs even during her lifetime. Taking her most cherished Chihuahua "Conchita" as an example, "Conchita" regularly underwent spa treatments and had a full-time employee dedicated to her care. Additionally, "Conchita" often accompanied her owner to high society luncheons. Once, Gale whimsically decided to buy a Land Rover specifically for "Conchita" to take her for regular spa treatments and nail grooming, but ultimately decided to give her Cadillac to "Conchita" and bought herself a new car!
More outrageously, "Conchita" even had her own "high fashion," adorned with expensive diamond jewelry. It was revealed that Gale's beloved dog "Conchita" owned a Cartier diamond necklace worth $15,000, but after wearing it for the first time, "Conchita" almost suffocated, and she refused to wear it again. Consequently, Gale joked, "'Conchita' is the only girl I know who doesn't consider diamonds as friends!"
Son Takes the Matter to Court
It can be imagined how outraged Gale's son Brett was upon learning about his mother's bizarre will. On the 17th, an infuriated Brett filed a lawsuit with the Miami-Dade County Court in the U.S., demanding that his mother's will be declared invalid, thus igniting a "heritage battle" between humans and dogs. Brett claimed that his mother Gale suffered from diseases in her later years and took large amounts of painkillers, which severely affected her brain. Due to being "brainwashed" by the drugs, Gale wasted substantial money on her three pet dogs and even followed others' advice to hire PR experts to create a "celebrity dog," which might have been part of some unscrupulous individuals' scheme to seize his mother's estate.
It is reported that the "human-dog heritage war" triggered by the inheritance has caused a huge stir in the U.S. Brett expressed serious doubts about his mother's "biased" will before her death and accused the family's butlers and bodyguards of persuading her to write this will. Brett pointed out that in 2008, under the persuasion of assistants around her, his mother Gale modified her will, resulting in his inheritance decreasing to a mere $1 million.
Human-Dog "Heritage Battle"
Had Played Out Three Years Ago
Nicknamed the "Queen of Mean," Leona Helmsley, an 87-year-old billionaire in the real estate and hotel industries in the U.S., left a $12 million inheritance to her pet female dog named "Trouble" after her death in August 2007. Meanwhile, her four grandchildren received varying shares: two of them received $5 million each, while the other two received nothing. Besides leaving a total of tens of millions of dollars to her pet dogs and relatives, Leona donated her entire estate, valued between $4 billion and $8 billion, to the charitable foundation established under her and her late husband's names.