Prince Louis and Princess Tessy to Divorce: January 18, 2017

[Marengo]

"As the single mother of two European princes" … my oh my. "HRH Princess Tessy" really seems to be clinging onto "Her" royal status as much as "She" can.

AFAIK she didn't specify what she meant with the 6-month notice. Perhaps she left it vague on purpose. Considering the ruling was that a house needed to be provided for her and the children we can only assume it is for moving to a new house. There are many "mothers of European princes" -single or not- that do not live in Kensington but have a more modest place.

Her changing demands and curious way of gaining sympathy shows that it is not a great decision to represent yourself in such a case without a sollicitor - who will be trained in these things. Her arrogance and over-estimisation of her own abilities in the area of the law did her no favours in this process.

I hope she is able to get help. Her landing back on earth between us mere mortals seems to be a rough one.

That reads to me like a textbook case for the old saying: "The person who represents him/herself in a court of law has a fool for a client."

Exactly!

 

[Al_bina]

That reads to me like a textbook case for the old saying: "The person who represents him/herself in a court of law has a fool for a client."

It certainly reads as though she wanted a property transferred to her, and then she backed down, and then she returned to that theme.

Venturing my opinion ...
Perhaps Tessy expected that the UK court would side with her in the same way it awarded wives of rich Russians with the half of all assets (money, property, and land). She is perplexed by Justice MacDonald's ruling.

 

[tommy100]

I think the biggest difference here is that Louis is no millionaire in his own right. He has very few if any assets of his own. He has a generous (but only a 5 figure) allowance from his parents and homes paid for but he doesn't own these. Thus he is not in the same category as rich Russians. if you look at the facts and take out the Grand Ducal wealth bar the £40,000 allowance she actually currently earns more than Louis.
In most of the cases where a wife gets a large settlement it is when she can say she was part of the money making business itself or taking care of the children and looking after the home allowing her husband to work and make the millions/billions. Tessy is not saying any of those things nor can she claim them.

 

[Al_bina]

I think the biggest difference here is that Louis is no millionaire in his own right. He has very few if any assets of his own. He has a generous (but only a 5 figure) allowance from his parents and homes paid for but he doesn't own these. Thus he is not in the same category as rich Russians. if you look at the facts and take out the Grand Ducal wealth bar the £40,000 allowance she actually currently earns more than Louis.
In most of the cases where a wife gets a large settlement it is when she can say she was part of the money making business itself or taking care of the children and looking after the home allowing her husband to work and make the millions/billions. Tessy is not saying any of those things nor can she claim them.

One understands that rich Russians can not be compared to the Luxembourg royalty. At the same time, the British system is believed to be much fairer to wives than husbands.

Tessy knew Prince Louis' financial situation. It seems to me that she expected the court to force her ex-spouse to pay her up by using the Grand Ducal family funds. My assumption can be wrong though.

 

[CrownPrincessJava]

So, she was looking for a 'property transfer'. And next to a house completely paid for she also needed 100.000 pounds yo maintain her desired lifestyle.

When she finally realized that she wouldn't get the house for life she changed her position a bit. Nonetheless, it remains shocking how she keeps using her sons as the main argument for her lavish lifestyle. The grand fuke probably wishes that he never made her a princess and had also that he had elevated his grandchildren to counts instead of princes...

In addition, since when does being a prince, especially one without any succession rights, require a luxurious lifestyle? I am sure there are several titled people, including princes, who live a rather ordinary life.

Sounds like she went in with a shock-and-awe defence. Also sounds like it didn't work. This is what happens when you're arrogant to think you can do better than a lawyer

 

[akina21]

I think the biggest difference here is that Louis is no millionaire in his own right. He has very few if any assets of his own.

And I think that's the problem . Louis comes from a very rich family and he lives the lifestyle of a rich guy but because he owns virtually nothing himself he now gets to play the poor guy . Like he really only makes 40,000 a year . If I were Tessy I'd lose my mind over that too .

 

[MARG]

Yes, I think her being photographed all over the world wearing haute couture or "holidaying" solo with her two little princelings, served up in court by her too without her previous counsel totally backfired. The judge is no fool and it took him a relatively short time to sort the wood from the trees. She got what she needed to house the boys when they are with her, bearing in mind all other aspects are paid for by the family. He saw that Tessy wanted a life of luxury, and if Lous couldn't afford it, the Grand Ducal Family should pay for it!

Tessy knew who Louis was and what he wanted to do with his life, he has a heart for giving, for working for charitable NGO's none of which pays well but I think his family were happy to provide for his family because they approved of his calling. It's not the priesthood but it an honourable calling. To those who much is given, much is required. I think the last thing he saw coming was Tessy wanting a life of luxury, high society and status.

I do not know if Louis and Tessy had a prenup but the reason so many of the international great, good and not so good is because the Court is not bound by prenups which is yet another reason teven the BRF don't bother with them.

 

[maria-olivia]

Her being photographed all over the world wearing haute couture was indeed stupid.

Louis Lawyers surely asked the Prince not to work so no incomes. The Luxembourger young Royals are not working Royals ! (except Felix who married a rich heiress and received a wine yard)

 

[camelot23ca]

"As the single mother of two European princes" … my oh my. "HRH Princess Tessy" really seems to be clinging onto "Her" royal status as much as "She" can.

AFAIK she didn't specify what she meant with the 6-month notice. Perhaps she left it vague on purpose. Considering the ruling was that a house needed to be provided for her and the children we can only assume it is for moving to a new house. There are many "mothers of European princes" -single or not- that do not live in Kensington but have a more modest place.

Her changing demands and curious way of gaining sympathy shows that it is not a great decision to represent yourself in such a case without a sollicitor - who will be trained in these things. Her arrogance and over-estimisation of her own abilities in the area of the law did her no favours in this process.

I hope she is able to get help. Her landing back on earth between us mere mortals seems to be a rough one.




Exactly!

I haven’t read what led to the divorce between Tessy and Louis but, if Tessy had been smart, she would have taken the high road, even if Louis was at fault in some way, and quietly kept working and taking care of her sons. No Instagram posts, no interviews, and obviously representation by a knowledgeable legal team. A family that is both high profile and very wealthy has NO interest in seeing the mother of two of their grandchildren engage in such embarrassing behaviour and I suspect if Tessy had been reasonable and kept a lid on her anger in public she could have come away with a much more favourable financial settlement, and, more importantly over the long term, ongoing friendly career help from Louis’s family connections, ongoing access to the family’s wealth management team, and other intangibles worth their weight in gold.

 

[tommy100]

Absolutely! What gets me is Tessy saying her and Louis are “still the best of friends”. Well I certainly don’t make social media posts and let me friends talk to the media abkut how awful my friends families are. What is sad is if they really were on good terms like some other divorced couples the Grand ducal family may very well have continued to support Tessy with flights, holidays etc as the mother of two of the grand duke’s grandsons.

 

[Tatiana Maria]

And I think that's the problem . Louis comes from a very rich family and he lives the lifestyle of a rich guy but because he owns virtually nothing himself he now gets to play the poor guy . Like he really only makes 40,000 a year . If I were Tessy I'd lose my mind over that too .

From the judgment, even Princess Tessy did not question her husband's presentation of €40,000 per annum as his current income. There appears to be nothing to cast doubts on the figure of €40,000.

The central controversy between the spouses was not over Prince Louis's income, but over whether it would be appropriate for the judge to "afford judicious encouragement" to the Grand Duke and Grand Duchess to provide the funding asked for by Princess Tessy, a sum which far exceeded Louis's financial resources.

In England, it is not within the power of divorce courts to confiscate assets owned by the parents of the spouses, but Princess Tessy argued that "should the court make an order that the husband is not able, on the face of it, to satisfy from his own resources, the court can be satisfied that his parents will make good the deficit by way of further voluntary contributions". However, the Marshal of the Court stated that while the Grand Duke and Grand Duchess would continue to pay for their grandchildren's expenses, they did not intend to provide further contributions to Tessy's financial award.

The judgment of Justice Macdonald that he could not distribute the funds owned by the Grand Duke and Grand Duchess to Princess Tessy in the manner she asked for was in keeping with English legal tradition. His judgment cites an analogous 2005 case between a husband who was not independently wealthy, but whose father held a fortune, and a wife who took the same position as Princess Tessy: the judge ought to order her husband to make payments that would far exceed the husband's own assets and income, "in the hope and expectation that [the husband's father] will make up the difference". In the 2005 case, the wife's solicitor was asked whether he was aware of any case where a court had made an order of this kind. The solicitor was unable to cite any equivalent cases.

Is Tessy able to live in the same house in which she and her boys now live?
If she moves, will they be able to live in the same familiar neighbourhood?

From reports on home prices in London, it seems the £1.5M offer should be capable of purchasing a home even in the most expensive neighborhoods in London.

I think the biggest difference here is that Louis is no millionaire in his own right. He has very few if any assets of his own. He has a generous (but only a 5 figure) allowance from his parents and homes paid for but he doesn't own these. Thus he is not in the same category as rich Russians. if you look at the facts and take out the Grand Ducal wealth bar the £40,000 allowance she actually currently earns more than Louis.
In most of the cases where a wife gets a large settlement it is when she can say she was part of the money making business itself or taking care of the children and looking after the home allowing her husband to work and make the millions/billions. Tessy is not saying any of those things nor can she claim them.

One understands that rich Russians can not be compared to the Luxembourg royalty. At the same time, the British system is believed to be much fairer to wives than husbands.

Tessy knew Prince Louis' financial situation. It seems to me that she expected the court to force her ex-spouse to pay her up by using the Grand Ducal family funds. My assumption can be wrong though.

I believe the explanation given by tommy100 is accurate. The British system is believed to be "fairer to wives" because, in comparison to most systems elsewhere, it is more beneficial to the spouse who earns the lower income and holds fewer assets, which within the majority of marriages is the wife. In this marriage, however, the husband is less wealthy than the wife (although the parents of the wife are far less wealthy than the parents of the husband).

 

[maria-olivia]

The roofman Mr Anthony and his family are certainly not popuar anymore in their Village.

 

[Kataryn]

When Tessy is divorced, she will loose the diplomats passport she surely has from Luxembourg. How will she cope with Brexit, being a citizen of Luxembourg? Will she be able to stay on in London?

 

[tommy100]

The roofman Mr Anthony and his family are certainly not popuar anymore in their Village.

Do we know that for sure, I am always interested in how this divorce is seen by the people o Luxembourg but with few media outlets its hard to tell what opinion is.

 

[Duc_et_Pair]

Do we know that for sure, I am always interested in how this divorce is seen by the people o Luxembourg but with few media outlets its hard to tell what opinion is.

Prince Louis is of course just the periphery of the House, living a private life outside the country. My guess is that most Luxembourgers shrug the shoulders and go on with their life.

 

[An Ard Ri]

I was never a fan of Tessy Anthony before she started this social media circus and now I just hope she goes away as I'm tired of her name.

 

[Al_bina]

... [snipped]
I believe the explanation given by tommy100 is accurate. The British system is believed to be "fairer to wives" because, in comparison to most systems elsewhere, it is more beneficial to the spouse who earns the lower income and holds fewer assets, which within the majority of marriages is the wife. In this marriage, however, the husband is less wealthy than the wife (although the parents of the wife are far less wealthy than the parents of the husband).

My assumption was/is that Tessy expected the fair British system to meet her demands by making the spouse's family pay. Justice MacDonald happened to have a different opinion.

 

[tommy100]

Tessy clearly sees it as fair that the Grand Ducal Family pay for her upkeep whereas the British law places the emphasis on the spouses assets not those of his family.

 

[LadyFinn]

Tessy at her Instagram
when my divorce started more than three years ago I realised that the only thing that could get me through this hell is sports.
https://www.instagram.com/p/BtYgjK5F5MY/?utm_source=ig_twitter_share&igshid=1j3lf7esi8ol1

 

[maria-olivia]

and champagne and Chanel bags ...

 

[Addapalla]

Tessy clearly sees it as fair that the Grand Ducal Family pay for her upkeep whereas the British law places the emphasis on the spouses assets not those of his family.

Perhaps Tessy is not entirely off the mark. The royal convention for centuries has been that a woman marries into her husband's family. In retrospect, was not the divorce settlement of the Queen of Denmark's former daughter-in-law somewhat a divorce between the wife, her husband AND the royal family? To some extent Diana and Sarah were also divorcing a royal family as much as they were divorcing a husband.

 

[Somebody]

Perhaps Tessy is not entirely off the mark. The royal convention for centuries has been that a woman marries into her husband's family. In retrospect, was not the divorce settlement of the Queen of Denmark's former daughter-in-law somewhat a divorce between the wife, her husband AND the royal family? To some extent Diana and Sarah were also divorcing from the royal family as much as they were divorcing a husband.

An important difference is that those ladies became official representing members of the family as their husbands were high up in the line of succession, so yes, their divorce also included breaking with royal life. In Tessy's case her marriage to Louis clearly did not include becoming an official member of the grand ducal family. Instead, Louis gave up his succession rights because he had fathered a child with her before marriage.

 

[Gawin]

Tessy at her Instagram
when my divorce started more than three years ago I realised that the only thing that could get me through this hell is sports.
https://www.instagram.com/p/BtYgjK5F5MY/?utm_source=ig_twitter_share&igshid=1j3lf7esi8ol1

And Instagram!

 

[Tatiana Maria]

Perhaps Tessy is not entirely off the mark. The royal convention for centuries has been that a woman marries into her husband's family. In retrospect, was not the divorce settlement of the Queen of Denmark's former daughter-in-law somewhat a divorce between the wife, her husband AND the royal family? To some extent Diana and Sarah were also divorcing from the royal family as much as they were divorcing a husband.

The same convention has applied to commoners in Britain, and accordingly the majority of British women take the name of their husband's family on marriage.

However, under British laws, parents do not even have an obligation to pay for their own children after the children have attained their majority, so the natural consequence is that they also have no obligation to pay for their children's spouses or former spouses.

 

[Somebody]

The same convention has applied to commoners in Britain, and accordingly the majority of British women take the name of their husband's family on marriage.

However, under British laws, parents do not even have an obligation to pay for their own children after the children have attained their majority, so the natural consequence is that they also have no obligation to pay for their children's spouses or former spouses.

Given that neither Louis nor Tessy is a British subject, I don't think it's relevant that in Britain women take their husband's surname and completely give up their maiden name. This is not how it works in Luxembourg. If I've been informed correctly, Luxembourg women revert back to their maiden name after a divorce (well, Tessy is already doing that before her divorce is finalized but strangely combining it with her husband's titles...).

 

[Prisma]

An important difference is that those ladies became official representing members of the family as their husbands were high up in the line of succession, so yes, their divorce also included breaking with royal life. In Tessy's case her marriage to Louis clearly did not include becoming an official member of the grand ducal family. Instead, Louis gave up his succession rights because he had fathered a child with her before marriage.

Also Luxembourg is small and doesn't need many full-time royals. Even if Louis and Tessy had married without surprise baby and kept his place in succession, they wouldn't have regular official duties. Look at Felix and Claire who appear only occasionally outside of major events (Octave, National Day).

 

[tommy100]

Well it doesn't matter what historically people have done, if Tessy is as smart as people and she herself make out she should surely have researched current British law before seeking a divorce? Its pretty clear to most people that the Courts base decisions on the spouses assets, not those of his or her family or what they might inherit in the future or what their families may gift to them. Diana and Sarah both got financial settlements based on their husbands wealth hence why Diana got much more than Sarah. As any monarch could do, QE2 offered more in addition - a Trust Fund for Beatrice and Eugenie in respect of Fergie and an office and KP apartment to Diana. That was in addition. Likewise the Grand Ducal Family could offer Tessy more than the court rules, though her constant put downs and vanity seeking intagramming make that IMO unlikely.

 

[Tatiana Maria]

Given that neither Louis nor Tessy is a British subject, I don't think it's relevant that in Britain women take their husband's surname and completely give up their maiden name. This is not how it works in Luxembourg. If I've been informed correctly, Luxembourg women revert back to their maiden name after a divorce (well, Tessy is already doing that before her divorce is finalized but strangely combining it with her husband's titles...).

I respectfully disagree about the relevance. Divorce courts in Britain determine spousal maintenance payments by applying British law, even if neither spouse is a British subject. The proposal was (if I correctly understood it) that because royal women marry into their husbands' families, they can fairly expect (British) divorce courts to rule that the families (not merely the husbands) must pay for their upkeep. The point I tried to make was that even in non-royal divorces in Britain, most of the women had married into their husbands' families. Therefore, if marrying into a family obligated the family to pay for the wife's upkeep after a divorce, innumerable families whose sons were divorced in British court would have to pay for their sons' former wives. But that is not the case: The ruling says that no cases (in British divorces) could be found where the family was required to pay.

Likewise the Grand Ducal Family could offer Tessy more than the court rules, though her constant put downs and vanity seeking intagramming make that IMO unlikely.

They did offer to pay for a home for her to reside in rent-free for twelve years.

 

[Prisma]

12 years rent-free is generous and reasonable. Of course, it would be more generous and less disruptive if the GDF let Tessy and the boys stay in their current home but apparently that’s not an option. I do wonder if the GDF will actually notify Tessy to leave though. She will certainly vent on social media if they do.

It’s doubtful Louis/GDF will give another offer. After all, the GDF was firm about not yielding to exorbitant demands. A former maid sued GD Maria Teresa a few years ago and instead of simply settling, the GDF let the matter go to court. Don’t know the outcome of that case though. Clearly they’re not afraid of negative impressions of what could be released publicly and will stick to what they believe to be fair.

Hypothetically, can Louis apply for decree absolute now? Or does the possibility of Tessy appealing prevent decree absolute from being granted? The waiting times are long past and Louis wants a "clean break." BTW, I don't think he'll file because that would upset Tessy. He probably wants her to file for decree absolute.

 

[Duc_et_Pair]

Well it doesn't matter what historically people have done, if Tessy is as smart as people and she herself make out she should surely have researched current British law before seeking a divorce? Its pretty clear to most people that the Courts base decisions on the spouses assets, not those of his or her family or what they might inherit in the future or what their families may gift to them. Diana and Sarah both got financial settlements based on their husbands wealth hence why Diana got much more than Sarah. As any monarch could do, QE2 offered more in addition - a Trust Fund for Beatrice and Eugenie in respect of Fergie and an office and KP apartment to Diana. That was in addition. Likewise the Grand Ducal Family could offer Tessy more than the court rules, though her constant put downs and vanity seeking intagramming make that IMO unlikely.

Tessy can choose a house to her liking, of maximum 1,500,000.00 Pounds, which will be purchased for her, which will be maintenanced, including all utility and service costs. All costs regarding the two princes, their education, their medical bills, all will be met. It is a generous offer most single mums can only dream about. And all this from essentially a penniless husband.