Eldest children of 'French Elvis' Johnny Hallyday win legal battle to freeze his assets in bitter family feud over his £100million fortune
- Hallyday's two eldest children have been locked in a dispute with his widow
- David Hallyday and Laura Smet were left out of Hallyday's 2014 will
- The will was written in the U.S. where law states all children are entitled
- It will be pivotal to the case whether French or U.S. law applies to the will
The eldest children of Johnny Hallyday, dubbed 'French Elvis', have won a legal battle to freeze his assets in a family feud over his £100million fortune.
Hallyday's two eldest children, David Hallyday and Laura Smet, have been locked in a dispute with the rock stars 43-year-old widow Laeticia Hallyday.
Under French law Mrs Hallyday and their two young adopted children are entitled to the entirety of her late husband's fortune.
Laura Smet and David Hallyday (pictured) were left out of their father Johnny Hallyday's will
A French court has now put a temporary freeze on several of Hallyday's estates in France after his two eldest children were left out of his will.
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The will was written in 2014 in California under U.S. laws, which don't apply in France, where all children receive automatic inheritance rights.
It will be pivotal to the case whether French or U.S. law is applicable as Hallyday and his fourth wife most recently lived in Los Angeles.
Johnny Hallyday (pictured with his fourth wife Laeticia Hallyday) died in December last year of lung cancer
However the court have already refused Ms Smet and Mr Hallyday's involvement in a not-yet-released posthumous album of their father, ruling in favor of his widow.
Laura Smet, 34 whose mother is the French movie star Nathalie Baye, touched many with a letter addressed to 'cher Papa' saying, 'I have chosen to fight.
A French court has now put a temporary freeze on several of Hallyday's estates
'I would have preferred this to stay in the family, unfortunately, our family is like that.'
David Hallyday, 51, whose mother is French singer and actress Sylvie Vartan, has remained mostly silent.
The lawyer for Laeticia Hallyday said he was content with the ruling Friday because it doesn't affect the couple's American holdings, including their home, and respects 'the wish of Johnny Hallyday' regarding the album he was working on before his death.
He said he was confident 'the last wishes of the artist' would be respected.
Days before Friday's ruling, Laeticia Hallyday spoke directly for the first time about the family dispute with Le Point.
She said: 'They're stealing my grieving.
'They're pummeling me.'
Still, she said she was ready to forgive one day because 'we're a family.'
Adding: 'I only want peace, but respect the memory of my husband.'
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