The lawsuit, brought by Manuela Herzer, challenged the mental competency of the media mogul, who’s an owner and chairman emeritus of both Viacom and CBS.
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“Redstone’s testimony has ultimately defeated her case”, Los Angeles Superior Court Judge David Cowan said Monday in his ruling.
Asked by one of his lawyers what he wanted the judge to do, Redstone replied he desired that his 62-year-old daughter, Shari Redstone, serve as his health care agent, Cowan wrote.
“The court is finding only that the ‘proceeding is not reasonably necessary to protect the interests of the patient, ‘ ” the judge wrote, explaining: “There is no good cause for further judicial involvement where the court has now heard directly from Redstone that he has lost trust in Herzer, does not want her in his life and instead wants his daughter Shari to look after him if necessary”.
The battle over the fortune of ailing media mogul Sumner Redstone shifted to a new front Monday after a judge threw out the case over his medical care and both sides targeted each other with new $100 million-plus lawsuits. Redstone repeatedly referred to Herzer in the video as a “f–ing bitch”, underscoring his reputation for saucy language.
Herzer essentially had to prove that Redstone was of sound mind when he appointed her as his health care agent in September 2015, but that he lacked the capacity to revoke the directive a month later.
Herzer’s lawyer, Pierce O’Donnell, told reporters outside court that his client had filed a new suit for at least $70 million – this time against Shari Redstone for interfering with Herzer’s expected inheritance and invasion of privacy.
Redstone struggled to speak when questioned by attorneys for Herzer as part of her lawsuit, a transcript of his testimony shows, and a medical expert hired by Herzer said he believes the mogul suffers from moderate dementia. After Redstone’s deposition was played to the judge on Friday, Cowan admitted that it was strong evidence of Redstone’s wishes and indicated he might call a halt to the trial. They said she also executed a $5 million grant agreement with Redstone for the foundation she runs.
The 92-year-old media mogul – majority owner of CBS (NYSE: CBS ) and Viacom (NASDAQ: VIA , NASDAQ: VIAB ) – is worth north of $5 billion and he is now in a legal tussle with his former lover, Manuela Herzer.
The court papers claim that at Shari Redstone’s instigation, nurses and other staff members eavesdropped and spied on her. “Redstone is free to make this decision for whatever reason, even if for a poorly thought out or erroneous reason”.
Redstone will seek to recover money that he lavished on Herzer and another ex-girlfriend, Klieger said.
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Shari Redstone said a statement Monday that she was grateful the court ended case.
