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Court rules Henry Greene’s millions be divided between reputed wife, children
The relatively new enacted Civil Law; the “Rights of Persons in Common Law Union” was enforced on Friday as Chief Justice (ag), Ian Chang, ordered that the estate of former Police Commissioner, Henry Greene, be divided between his reputed wife, Gail Stoll, and his two children.
In March of last year, Greene’s two children, Troy and Shelda, had moved to the courts claiming millions of dollars in assets from his reputed wife and her attorney.
Chief Justice Ian Chang (“ag)
Stoll had counter filed a motion in which she maintained that she was Greene’s common-law wife at the time of his death and as such she should be granted Letters of Administration to his estate.
Under recently amended laws, “a single woman and a single man who have lived together in a common law relationship for not less than five years immediately preceding the death of either one of them, and if the person died intestate, the surviving woman or man shall be entitled to the same rights of a surviving wife or husband.”
According to Justice Chang, since the children were the ones who brought the action, the burden of proof was upon them to prove that the defendant does not qualify under the 2012 Act. Chang stressed in his ruling that the court was not satisfied that Stoll was not living with Greene when he died.
The Chief Justice explained that certain items of circumstantial evidence strongly and clearly point in the direction of an extant relationship at the time of Greene’s death even though the couple had their “ups and downs”.
Chang posited that the court would refuse to dismiss the application of the defendant for a grant of Letter of Administration. “Indeed the court sees it fit to order that both Stoll and the children make a joint application for a grant of Letters of Administration within three months.”
It was noted that either party could apply to the court for directions in the administration of the estate.
Greene died in 2012, following a car accident, leaving millions of dollars in assets including several vehicles, holdings in the gold mining sector and several other properties.
The children were calling on Stoll to hand over all or any documents, papers, including records of the deceased business, his bank statements and the transport in respect to his residence at Lot 80, Lamaha Springs, Georgetown.
Former Commissioner of Police, Henry Greene
They were also demanding that the late Police Commissioner’s reputed wife hand over all or any documents, papers, including the records of his business, bank statements and lease in respect to his poultry and livestock farm at Kuru-Kururu, Soesdyke/Linden Highway.
Stoll was also asked to hand over the documents of five vehicles that Greene owned, along with the insurance for one of them. It did not end there. The children were also interested in the documents and records that Stoll has in respect of the funeral expenses incurred in the burial of the late Commissioner of Police.
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