Dusseldorf The dispute over the billion dollar inheritance of the large businessman Heinz Hermann Thiele reaches a new level of escalation. His widow Nadia has sued the supervisory authority for foundations, which is part of the government of Upper Bavaria. The news magazine “Der Spiegel” first reported on it.
Nadia Thiele wants to ensure that the statutes of a foundation set up by Thiele’s executors are not recognized by the supervisory authority, a spokeswoman for the Bavarian Administrative Court in Munich confirmed to the Handelsblatt: “In the plaintiff’s opinion, the version specifically submitted to the recognition authority does not correspond to the decisive will of the founder. “
Heinz Hermann Thiele was one of the most successful entrepreneurs in Germany. He began his career as a lawyer in the patent department of the automotive supplier Knorr- Bremse and rose to become CEO within just 15 years. Thiele then bought the ailing company on credit. In the decades that followed, he increased Knorr- Bremse sales from 254 million to almost seven billion euros.
Heinz Hermann Thiele’s fortune was estimated at 17 billion euros
When Thiele died in February 2021, he also owned a majority stake in the Vossloh rail company, a large block of Lufthansa shares, immense real estate assets and a cattle farm in Uruguay. His fortune was estimated at 17 billion euros.
Thiele actually wanted to put his assets into a foundation while he was still alive. Because this did not happen, this task lies with his executor Robin Brühmüller. He inherited the order from his father, a longtime confidant of the entrepreneur.
Heinz Hermann Thiele’s relationship with the Brühmüllers is significantly longer than that with his second wife Nadia. The two married in 2011. When Thiele died, he was 79 years old and his second wife Nadia was 45. Thiele also left behind two children, Julia Thiele-Schürhoff and Henrik Thiele. The latter has himself filed a separate lawsuit because he sees himself disadvantaged.
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Nadia Thiele has been attacking Brühmüller for months. In her current lawsuit, she primarily criticizes the people who the executor of the will intended for her deceased husband’s foundation. One of them is Stephan Schauhoff. The lawyer at the law firm Flick Gocke Schaumburg in Bonn is to join the advisory board of the Thiele Foundation.
Nadia Thiele does not comment publicly on the inheritance disputes. It is said from those around her that she does not consider Schauhoff to be independent because he in turn advises Brühmüller on foundation issues. Nadia Thiele therefore sees a conflict of interest at Schauhoff.
Schauhoff did not want to say anything about the specific mandate, but said that he “always carefully checks in his legal work whether there could be a conflict of interest, especially when corresponding suspicions are expressed”.
A former HR manager at Knorr- Bremse is to be the second member of the Advisory Board. Nadia Thiele should not consider him independent either. The former manager is on friendly terms with Brühmüller and is therefore not suitable for carrying out his function in a neutral manner.
In addition to the people, the Thiele widow should also be bothered by the structure of the foundation. It is intended that new board members of the foundation will not be appointed by the advisory board, but by the retiring board. It is a clear violation of corporate governance rules for an outgoing board member to choose his or her successor himself. However, this type of reassignment of board positions in foundations is not unusual. Possibly it was even wanted by the testator.
The plaintiff is also said to have objected to the planned remuneration for the board of directors with a six-digit amount.
The court reprimanded “hostile behavior” by the lawyers
A spokesman for Brühmüller did not comment on the specific points. The relationship between the executor and Thiele’s widow has been in turmoil since she accused Brühmüller of greed and fraudulent behavior towards her deceased husband.
In Germany, the remuneration of an executor is calculated according to the so-called New Rhenish Table. It stipulates that an executor of a will receives 1.5 percent of this from an inheritance of five million euros, unless otherwise stipulated in the last will. There are no special provisions in Heinz Hermann Thiele’s will, so Brühmüller could receive more than 250 million euros.
Nadia Thiele considers this not only immoral, but also illegal. Her lawyers Peter Gauweiler and Thomas Fischer spoke to the Munich public prosecutor’s office, which began investigations and has already searched Brühmüller’s offices. The executor emphasizes that he is acting in accordance with the law.
Nadia Thiele has so far been unsuccessful on the legal route. The probate court in Munich ruled on December 2, 2022 that Heinz Hermann Thiele was perfectly capable of reading, understanding and questioning his will.
The billionaire has often dealt with the will, nothing indicates a manipulation of his will by others. If Thiele had wanted to set a different payment for the executor, he had every opportunity to do so.
According to a court, the billionaire has dealt intensively with his will.
(Photo: dpa)
Instead of the executor, the probate court saw Thiele’s widow as reason to reprimand. It accused their lawyers of “hostile behavior”. The impression arises that they wanted to “publicly demote Brühmüller and thus create grounds for dismissal” with the criminal complaint.
Brühmüller himself also rejects the allegations. It was a conscious decision by Thiele to calculate the fee according to the new Rhenish table.
It is said from those close to the executor that he coordinates closely with the foundation administration. This had announced in December that the draft for Thiele’s foundation statutes could be recognized. Since then, no problems have been identified.
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