‘Catwoman’ was in legal trouble in Miami before her death. Here’s what we know
Jocelyn Wildenstein was in some serious legal hot water before her death of a pulmonary embolism on Dec. 31 in Paris at age 84.
The Swiss socialite, nicknamed Catwoman due to her transformative and dramatic plastic surgeries, owed a great deal of money and was getting sued over it, according to Miami-Dade County court records.
Wildenstein, who filed for bankruptcy in 2018, was in debt for hundreds of thousands of dollars to NYC-based Regal Jewelry and Gift Shop. The case had been dragging on since April 2021, when a judge ruled in the company’s favor, ordering the divorced mother of two to pay $268,000, plus $75,928.44 in interest for alleged unreturned baubles.
The affidavit, which spells the famous defendant’s first name as Jocelyne, lists her last known address as 1800 Collins Ave. in Miami Beach., where she was also reportedly facing eviction.
RadarOnline reports that after Wildenstein missed a contempt hearing on Oct, 23, Judge Migna Sanchez-Llorens issued a writ of bodily attachment, meaning if marshals found her, she would have been immediately taken into custody and forced to appear in court.
As per the docket, the jet-setter’s attorney, David Valero, withdrew from counsel on Dec. 16, which he confirmed to the Miami Herald on Friday. It’s unclear if she retained someone new; a hearing on the matter is still set for Jan. 14.
It’s also unclear how long Wildenstein was staying in Paris or if she was even planning to return to the United States.
According to her longtime partner, her health had been poor. Lloyd Klein told People magazine she suffered from phlebitis, which is vein inflammation that causes blood clots
“Because of her phlebitis, the legs were very, very swollen, and the blood was blocked, and there was no oxygen in the brain,” the fashion designer said, adding Wildenstein died during an afternoon nap.
“It’s extremely sad.”
This story was originally published January 3, 2025 at 4:36 PM.
