Paulina Porizkova is seeking part of estranged husband Ric Ocasek's estate — despite his claim she 'abandoned' him
Paulina Porizkova is seeking part of her estranged husband Ric Ocasek’s estate.
On Tuesday, the supermodel filed court documents in Manhattan Surrogate's Court, obtained by the New York Post, exercising her right to a share of his estate, which is worth at least $5.115 million.
“I, Paulina Porizkova, the surviving spouse of the Decedent, do hereby exercise the personal right of election,” and “elect to take my elective share,” the filing said, according to the news outlet.
New York State law stipulates that if a person dies, his or her spouse gets an “elective share” of $50,000 or one-third of the decedent’s estate. If that is not in the will, the surviving spouse has a right to file for it within a six-month window after an executor for the estate has been named. However, if the court determines that the spouse abandoned the decedent, they may not be entitled to that full share.
And that may be the case here. The Cars frontman, who died of heart disease at age 75 on Sept. 15, cut Porizkova out of his will — which he signed weeks before his death on Aug. 28 — noting that she “abandoned” him. The will, also obtained by the NYP, stated, “I have made no provision for my wife Paulina Porizkova (“Paulina”) as we are in the process of divorcing... Even if I should die before our divorce is final … Paulina is not entitled to any elective share … because she has abandoned me.”
After news of his will was made pubic, Porizkova denied that Ocasek felt abandoned by her and said she knew about his revised will since the day after he died. She also noted they shared the same business manager, Mario Testani, whom Ocasek named the executor of his estate.
The couple, who married in 1989 and shared two sons, had been separated. Porizkova publicly confirmed what she said was a a peaceful split in May 2018, saying they quietly parted ways a year earlier, despite continuing to make public appearances together. She said they remained a “happy family” but “no longer a couple.”
It was Porizkova who discovered Ocasek dead in the NYC townhouse Sept. 15 they once shared. She said he was recovering from surgery and she had been in and out, caring for him. While bringing him his Sunday morning coffee, she touched his cheek to wake him and realized he had died. She called his death “the end of my world as I knew it.”
Porizkova has continued to share her heartbreak on social media posts. Days ago, she wrote to her followers, “Peeps, I’m not good. Grief. Anger. No stable ground below me at the moment- insecurity in every pertinent and important area of my future. I’m breaking a little under the weight of it all.”
In a post on Tuesday — the day of her court filing — she made a reference to her finances on social media in a post about baking for the holidays. “I may not have a lot of ‘dough’ in the bank...” she wrote.
Some of the comments on the post come from the Cars fans blasting her for “abandoning” Ocasek.
Two of Ocasek’s six sons — not the sons with Porizkova — appeared to also be cut from his will. The NYP reports that the brothers hired attorney August Venturini, but Venturini would not say whether or not they plan to contest the will.
While Ocasek’s estate is estimated at $5.115 million, it is thought to be more via private trusts. Also, Ocasek’s NYC home was on the market earlier this year for $15.25 million and he ended up not selling it, so that too would presumably increase his net worth.
Yahoo Entertainment has reached out to Porizkova’s attorney for a statement. The lawyer handling Ocasek’s estate had no comment.
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