08 Sep CLOTHES DON’T MAKE THE MAN – DISINHERITED BARNEY’S NEW YORK HEIR SEEKS VENGEANCE IN A UNIQUE WAY
Bob Pressman, grandson of Barney Pressman (Barney started the first retail clothing store that bears his name), is cut from a different cloth. He is seeking revenge after his mother, Phyllis, disinherited him. Her will stated “Bob doesn’t get anything for reasons he well knows”. She died last year with an estate estimated at $100 million. Her husband, Fred, had built his dad’s retail clothing store into a chain of luxury clothing stores across the country. After Fred’s death in the 1990’s, Bob became head of Barney’s.
However, Bob could not keep up the success of the chain built by his father, Fred. He ran the business into the ground forcing it to declare bankruptcy. He was sued by his sisters (who also worked at Barney’s) for $30 million for stealing from the company (prior to the bankruptcy) while he was in charge of Barney’s. He stated the decline of the business was his brother’s fault although Bob ran the business. Needless to say, he did not get along with his family. Bob and his siblings sold the business for approximately $937 million (after filing bankruptcy in 1996).
Bob’s vengeance against his family has come in a creative way. Instead of simply contesting his mother’s will, he has used New York’s whistleblower laws against his family and the estate of his mother. As a whistleblower, Bob would be entitled from 25 to 30% of what is collected.
Bob’s mother, Phyllis, had 2 homes. One was a Southampton, New York mansion worth over $30 million (which was deeded into a limited liability corporation). She also had a Florida home where she moved after Fred died. However, in the last 6 years of her life, she has spent most of her time in her New York home according to Bob’s lawsuit. His suit said Phyllis had her drugs filled at a local drug store there and had two associates working at the New York home. He has accused his family of lying about the residence of Phyllis at the time of her death to avoid paying New York taxes in the amount of $20 million. Florida has no state income and estate tax unlike New York. Penalties and interest could add another $30 million.
Bob’s lawsuit claims his mother and siblings conspired to bring Phyllis back to Florida while she was on hospice and lie about where she resided at the time of her death. She died in Florida a few months later. It is anticipated that the lawsuit will examine whether Florida or New York was the center of life for Phyllis. Did she register to vote in Florida? Did she have a Florida driver’s license or identification card? Did she have bank accounts in Florida? Did she file a Declaration of Domicile? Did she spend more than ½ of the year in Florida? These are questions that will undoubtedly be asked in the lawsuit.
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