ROME -- Famed tenor Luciano Pavarotti’s will today touched off the start of a colossal legal battle in the Italian courts after it was revealed that he had left half of his estate to his wife, another half to his three daughters by a first marriage, and yet another half to his longtime girlfriend.“Luciano was, how is it you Americans say this, a ‘humanities major’ in university and a man who thought much with his heart and not so much the math,” said family spokesman Antonio El Sayeed.
The first half of Pavarotti’s vast estate is slated to go to his second wife, Nocoletta Mantovani, while the second and third halves go, respectively, to his children and to his longtime girlfriend Carlotta Dellavascola.
Additionally, the tenor left the remaining fourth half of his estate to his dog, Bruno.
“Luciano was a very generous and giving man. He did not like to stop giving even when he had given all. We miss him terribly. I’m hiring a lawyer,” said Ms. Mantovani.
A second will addresses Mr. Pavarotti’s American holdings because of the differences in Italian and American probate laws. Under American law, Pavarotti found himself limited to two halves to any whole estate, although legal scholars said he also had the option of dividing the estate into three, four or even ten portions.
“Under American law, he could even leave parts of his estate to 15 or 20 people,” said Lawrence Tribe, a Harvard law professor who returned a telephone call before Alan Dershowtz. “I’ve actually seen wills where the person left like two-thirds to one person and then divided the remaining third among a dozen other people and charities. It’s a scandal what dead people can get away with in Italy.”
Pavarotti’s American possessions were valued at $14.3 million in cash and bonds, of which he left $400,000 to the New York Opera Company. The remainder went to settle outstanding debts to Bon Apetit Bakery in Manhattan.
