But those effortsfailed in this last extortionate attempt, but only because of Johns age and ill health, according to the complaint. Paterakis was fined $25,000 and banned from making political contributions until 2012. For the first time were getting a very large lump-sum payment on an old PILOT that had profit-sharing.. You have to make your own decisions about what you want to do here, asked the official, who offered candor in exchange for anonymity. These cookies do not store any personal information. Contact Tobin OConnor Concino P.C. If the Circuit Court reassessed and found Roula Paterakis was indeed entitled to those funds her share would amount to about 30% of the total after-estate expenses, such as legal fees. She alleges that her husband's cash, assets and "controlling interest in the H&S Bakery enterprise" are worth more than $1 billion and should be part of his estate. He and Roula Passon began dating in 1997, she moved in with him in 2001 and they married in 2015, according to her lawsuit. Headquartered in Baltimore, Maryland, we operate as an integrated network of 10 bakeries and 30 distribution centers located strategically across the Eastern seaboard, not including our strategic partners which expands our reach even further. Any cash a person keeps around must be reported in an estate inventory, she said. Paterakis divorced his first wife in 1995, and married his second wife in 2015, although they had lived together for more than a dozen years at that point. She alleged she was deprived of her rightful inheritance by sham trust transactions perpetrated by her stepchildren. While John Paterakis, for all his business and civic prominence in Baltimore, lived a largely private life, the suits filed by his widow and now his children since his death expose much of what they claim was happening behind the scenes. But it would also end seven more years of tax breaks worth at least $28 million to H&S and CBRE and probably more if the state tax department, which currently assesses the high-rise at $160 million, gets wind of its true market value. Walton Family . If you would like to change your settings or withdraw consent at any time, the link to do so is in our privacy policy accessible from our home page.. John Paterakis Sr., who died in October 2016 at age 87, was an iconic Baltimore businessman and political player. Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. The upscale complex now boasts 5.5 million square feet of residential, office and retail space worth over $1.5 billion. In recent months, the family dispute has played out in multiple filings across various courthouses. ____________________________________. John Paterakis Sr., the risk-taking Baltimore native who built his H&S Bakery into the largest privately owned bakery in the country and redeveloped Harbor East, died Sunday at Johns Hopkins. (Karen Jackson/Baltimore Sun). Baltimore County Circuit Judge Colleen A. Cavanaugh found Roula Paterakis claim of sham trust transactions to be without merit, a determination affirmed by the Court of Special Appeals. His children also accused Roula Paterakis of berating and belittling John Paterakis Sr. A probate lawyer in Southern Maryland can help you if family members who never accepted you are using probate as a venue in which to antagonize you. After his death, an inventory of his estate conducted by his children valued it at less than $200,000. Also in Winnetka, and in spot No. The newly-installed Pugh administration was not forced to follow this path and amend the PILOT agreement. By some estimates, Paterakis owned assets valued at more than $1 billion. [Family feud over estate of bakery magnate, Harbor East developer Paterakis]. Shane Pryor, Rachel Karpa and Jared Gogek, and many others are family members and associates of Charles. While she and the estate representatives "have made progress toward resolving that dispute," she said, "they need additional time to complete their negotiations. How much of John Paterakis' wealth is rightfully a part of his estate and thus subject to his widow's claim to one-third of it will be hashed out among lawyers and in court. Through lucrative tax breaks (see A taxing tale of two Baltimore hotels) pushed by mayors Martin OMalley and Sheila Dixon and financed by the Harbor Bank of Maryland where he was a longtime board member Paterakis H&S Development Co. built Harbor East. The battle over the Paterakis fortune represents the worst-case scenario as far as probate disputes, but even a dispute over a smaller estate can be stressful. (The Daily Record/File Photo). (See below the list for the full methodology.) But the evidence was weak that Mosby accepted money from controlled donors, or people doing business with the city, Judge Lawrence Fletcher-Hill decides. The $570,000 that the siblings retrieved from one of their fathers safe deposit boxes in 2013 are considered gifts, and he had no additional cash in them at the time of his death. He turned the family business, H&S Bakery Inc., into one of the city's most prominent. The opinion cited a ruling this June by the Maryland Court of Appeals in another case, which recognized interference as a wrongful act. On Oct. 11, she sought another three-month extension, citing a dispute over the estate. The family alleged Roula, unhappy with the money left to her in the estate including the house they lived in; $250,000; an IRA worth more than $500,000; and $647,500 in life insurance tried to force John Paterakis Sr. to leave her $5 million, according to the complaint. According to his wife Roula, with whom he was in a relationship since 2001 whom he married about a year before his death, he also kept millions of dollars in cash in safes located on his real estate properties. Their expressed concerns about Johns welfare manifest themselves only after he is dead and when they are fighting over his assets, Weiner said. The Brew has learned that John Paterakis Sr., Baltimores billionaire bakery mogul, real estate developer and political powerbroker, died today at Johns Hopkins Hospital. Paterakis' will, submitted to the Baltimore County Register of Wills on Oct. 24, 2016, offers no details on how he wanted his estate distributed, referring instead to a trust that apparently includes those terms. Shunning the thought of retirement despite poor health, Paterakis was involved in the expansion of his domain to the east side of Central Avenue with the proposed $170 million "Liberty Harbor East" project. Your email address will not be published. According to Forbes and industry experts' latest study, John Paterakis estimated net worth is more than a couple of million USD. We express no view as to whether it does or does not, the special appeals court opinion said. Roula Paterakis filed suit in Orphans Court the year before alleging her late husbands children and grandchildren conspired to deprive her of her rightful share of Johns estate.. Adam Bednar Both depict screaming, animosity-fueled fights and both make claims that the other side took advantage of the family patriarch when he was in a weakened state toward the end of his life. "The Paterakis family is determined to resist her effort, to establish the truth about what occurred and to vindicate the family's good name." . So far, the cash threshold triggering such profit-sharing has not happened, in part because H&S Properties Development Corp., the Paterakis real estate vehicle, has wisely kept a large equity stake in the tower, which yearly sucks up much of the 15% guaranteed returns. Ohio had the highest population of Paterakis families in 1920. CBRE Global Investors is now under contract to buy a large portion of the tower. This law firm website is managed by MileMark Media. Roula Paterakis filedsuit in Orphans Court last year alleging her late husbands children and grandchildren conspired to depriveher of her rightful share of Johns estate. Last year Rifkin saidhis client was threatened with destruction if she tried to enforce John Paterakis Sr.s promise to leave her $20 million. She alleged that her husbands children had transferred assets worth millions of dollars into sham trusts to keep it out of his estate. But the Legg Mason Tower is scarcely marginal it boasts some of the highest rents in the city, is fully leased, and is under contract to sell at an extraordinary $480 per square foot, according to the Baltimore Business Journal. The blue-chip, glass-clad Legg Mason Building at Harbor East. The amount that leaves in dispute is about $570,000. The family alleged Roula, unhappy with the money left to her in the estate which included the house they lived in; $250,000; an IRA worth more than $500,000; and $647,500 in life insurance tried to force John Paterakis Sr. to leave her $5 million. (Fern Shen), Developer Paterakis orchestrates $130,000 in campaign contributions to Sheila Dixon. Daily Record Business Writer John Paterakis Sr. is inducted into the Baltimore Suns Business and Civic Hall of Fame last June at the Center Club. During the course of the bitter battle, she also accused her stepchildren of depleting their fathers cash assets during his final illness, while they accused her of greed and material excess. He was 87. In her lawsuit, Roula Paterakis said her husband kept millions of dollars in cash in safes and bank accounts that should be in the estate, and that William Paterakis and Venice Smith had filed false tax returns that didnt account for such assets. From his death in 2016 until now, his widow was involved in a legal dispute with the personal representatives of his estate, namely one of his sons and one of his daughters from his first marriage. Roula Paterakis is gratified that she will now have her day in court so that she can pursue this substantial cause of action the interference with the $20 million promise, said her attorney, Arnold M. Weiner. A consent judgment filed Wednesday in Baltimore County Circuit Court ended a messy, four-year legal battle between Roula Paterakis, the widow of the man who turned H&S Bakery from a family business into a conglomerate, and his six grown children, other family members and a business associate. Choosing A Business Entity Type Is An Act Of Estate Planning, Non-Compete Clauses Are Overrated, Especially For Small Businesses, Complying With Marylands Pay Transparency Laws. The suit alleges that the following summer, he discussed divorcing her with an attorney, but the attorney concluded that John Paterakis was too weak to go through such a battle. 2017 - 2023 Tobin OConnor Concino P.C. Out of these cookies, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. Weiner, defending his client from those accusations said at the time: If John Paterakis Sr., had been mistreated by his wife, where were his adult children while that supposedly took place? Our source scoffed at this explanation, saying, I bet its what George Philippou offered them, referring to the longtime lawyer for H&S Properties, who is married to the youngest daughter of the late John Paterakis. All the accusations of theft and fraud, which were brought in a failed attempt to pressure one of the most respected families in Baltimore, have been completely dismissed, said Nusinov, of Nusinov Smith LLPin Baltimore. Paterakis was fined $25,000 and banned from making political contributions until 2012. Nusinov called the handwritten document suspect at best, characterizing it as illegible and having no legal validity.. He paid a fine of $26,000 and was briefly barred from contributing to political campaigns, but came back strong during the current election cycle. And it will be downright stupendous for the Paterakis clan. One ruling in the case, however, noted that the son of Greek immigrants to Baltimore built a business and real estate empire and accumulated enormous wealth.. Bill Cole insisted yesterday that the $1.5 million payment by H&S is far above what we believe the city would get in the remaining seven years of the PILOT.. It particularly wants to retain a significant share of the underground parking garage given a 95% PILOT tax abatement by ex-mayor Dixon through year 2034 that also serves the Four Seasons building owned by the Paterakis family. The upscale complex now boasts 5.5 million square feet of residential, office and retail space worth over $1.5 billion. To view the purposes they believe they have legitimate interest for, or to object to this data processing use the vendor list link below. There was no evidence offered of play money bank accounts, the judgment said, and Roula Paterakis dropped that allegation. To purchase a reprint of this article, contact [emailprotected]. After Dixons loss in the primary, Paterakis and his four sons, who serve in executive positions at the company, turned their financial faucet to state Sen. Catherine E. Pugh, who is the Democratic Partys nominee for mayor in the general election. At issue is reconciling what Roula Paterakis' lawsuit says is "cash hoards" that her late husband maintained in an office safe, bank accounts and safe deposit boxes, with what has been filed in Orphans' Court, which makes no mention of such stashes, she said. Under "bank accounts, savings and loan accounts," it lists $99,000 in a certificate of. Please read our moderation policy before leaving a comment. John Paterakis, bakery magnate and Harbor East developer, and his wife, Roula Paterakis, at an event in 2015. Nusinov said Roula Paterakis was not left empty-handed: her husband left her $250,000, a retirement account worth more than $650,000 and the home they shared in Baltimore County. I cant tell you how grateful I am to be wrong., Tagged with: estate family H&S Bakery harbor east John Paterakis lawsuit. This strategy changed when H&S decided to put the building on the market. After supporting Dixon during the mayoral primary (which she lost to Pugh), the family switched allegiance and funneled $58,000 to Pugh mostly in $6,000 chunks, the legal limit, and most of it coming on a single day, July 22, 2016. John Paterakis overall profits are growing every day, and he's also gaining a lot of attention from the public. The agreement and judgment was a complete victory, said Jeffrey E. Nusinov, who represented William J. Paterakis and Venice Paterakis Smith, the siblings who were named by their father as personal representatives of his estate. We use cookies on our website to give you the most relevant experience by remembering your preferences and repeat visits. The complaint filed Thursday against Roula Paterakis, who married the businessman about a year before his death although they had lived together since 2001, seeks to lift the cloud she created by her own suit over his estate. He was 87 when he died on Oct. 16, 2016, from complications of a bone marrow disease. Charles's annual salary is between $30 . In September 2014, for example, about $23 million of assets were transferred into a newly created irrevocable trust, the lawsuit said. But equally compelling as underscored by evidence arising from Dixons own embezzlement trial six months after the approval of the Legg Mason PILOT was the enormous clout of John Paterakis. With this distraction put to bed, the Paterakis family will continue to honor John Paterakis true testamentary wishes and his legacy of supporting Baltimore.. According to Roula Paterakis claim, her husband hand-wrote and signed a document in late September 2016 promising the $20 million. The suit alleges that Paterakis' children have withheld assets including millions of dollars in "cash hoards" that their father kept in safes and bank accounts. Paterakis widow ends multimillion-dollar lawsuit against his children, Video Series: Off the Record with Sloane Brown, YOUR CALIFORNIA PRIVACY RIGHTS/PRIVACY POLICY, Marris Hoffee and Jamie Ferguson | Mid-Shore Pro Bono, Sheila McDonald, Marciel Rojas Rosario, Derek L. Simmons, Chick Zoll and Michael Latimer | Board of Child Care. Eventually John Paterakis Sr. invested in real estate development, such as Harbor East, which reshaped the citys waterfront skyline. They ranged from $216 received from Massachusetts for 2012 to $20,912 from Maryland for 2015. By 2015, the suit said, he was frail and kept alive with drugs flown in from outside the country.. Has it ever occurred to the BDC to say, We cant solve every problem you have, Mr. An example of data being processed may be a unique identifier stored in a cookie. The dueling lawsuits expose a rift between the businessmans descendants and his second wife. But there is usually great motivation to handle any disputes without going to court, he said, both to keep from airing any dirty laundry and to preserve as much wealth as possible from going through an expensive legal battle. Paterakis who grew his familys small, rowhouse-based bakery into a behemoth that supplies the likes of McDonalds and transformed a largely industrial tract of land into glitzy Harbor East died the following month. This was about 25% of all the recorded Paterakis's in USA. John Paterakis in an undated photograph at a family reception. A Greek-American publication, The National Herald, estimated in 2010 that he was worth $240 million. [John Paterakis, multimillionaire baker and Baltimore developer, dies]. John Paterakis involvement in politics wasnt without controversy. By submitting your email to receive this newsletter, you agree to our. Compared to 2021 standards, respondents to the 2020 survey described the threshold for wealth as being a net worth of $2.6 million. Arnold Weiner, a lawyer for Roula Paterakis, said his client was disappointed in the ruling and reviewingher options as to her next steps. There is the Paterakis who was awash in cash, stashing millions of dollars in safes and "play money" accounts that he used for gambling or buying expensive gifts. Weiner said once thats addressed with a written declaration he intends to also pursue those issues in court. FROM THE BREW ARCHIVES: Developer Paterakis orchestrates $130,000 in campaign contributions to Sheila Dixon (3/29/16), Tax breaks for developers economic development or corporate welfare? Roula Paterakis will receive what she was left as either a beneficiary or co-owner when John Paterakis died on Oct. 16, 2016, at age 87. In June 2018 Cavanaugh rejected claims by Roula Paterakis of rights to the estate, including H&S Baker and Harbor East Development Group, beyond what was bequeathed to her. And if there's a lot of money that's at stake, to mix metaphors, that's almost strike three. Roula was seeking one-third of the decades-run family bakeries, Nusinov said. Daily Record Legal Affairs Writer John Paterakis Sr.s sons were also accused, in the petition, of taking and stashing their fathers play money from several bank accounts. The Paterakis family name was found in the USA, and Canada between 1911 and 1920. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC. You are providing the support to help a marginal project to be viable.. A final count, involving what Roula Paterakis said was her husbands promise to leave her $20 million, was dismissed. Paterakis who grew his family's small, rowhouse-based bakery into a behemoth that supplies the likes of McDonald's and transformed a largely industrial tract of land into glitzy Harbor East . Adam Bednar covers real estate and development for The Daily Record. In 2010, the Greek-American publication The National. Continue with Recommended Cookies, Your email address will not be published. As John Paterakis health began failing, the suit charges, she became concerned not with his well-being but with ensuring that she got as much of his fortune as possible. John Paterakis, bakery magnate and Harbor East developer, and his wife, Roula Paterakis, at an event in 2015. 1. But the siblings suit casts doubt on that document, saying it is not signed or witnessed. To whether it does or does not, the judgment said, and Roula Paterakis dropped that allegation of! Cookies, your email to receive this newsletter, you agree to our 's a of... 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