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|Articles|June 25, 2008

Dog loses $10 million in inheritance

Court rules that Leona Helmsley's dog, Trouble, will receive just a fraction of what the billionaire designated in her will.

Leona Helmsley, infamously nicknamed "the Queen of Mean," held a soft spot for Trouble, her white Maltese. The New York court system didn't share Helmsley's canine affection, it seems. In a settlement between Helmsley's grandchildren and the New York State Attorney General's Office, the court cut Trouble's inheritance from $12 million to $2 million.

But Trouble isn't down and out. Carl Lekic, the 9-year-old dog's caretaker and general manager of a Helmsley hotel in Florida, said $2 million would be "enough money to pay for the dog's maintenance and welfare," according to an affidavit. Lekic says the money will cover Trouble's annual expenses: $100,000 for full-time security, $8,000 for grooming, and $1,200 for food-not to mention the $60,000 Lekic receives every year as a guardian fee.

The court treated Helmsley's two grandchildren better than Trouble. Originally cut out of her will "for reasons which are known to them," the grandchildren will together receive $6 million in the settlement.

Photo by Stockbyte/Getty Images.

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