Lawyer in court

Will dispute: daughter and sister stalked?

Bei einem solch wichtigen Thema sollte man sich gut informieren, um Halbwissen und Unwahrheiten vorzubeugen.

(Bild: Butch - stock.adobe.com)

On Monday, a 54-year-old lawyer - the woman most recently worked as a real estate agent - had to answer for persistently stalking her daughter and sister as well as several Chamber of Commerce officials at the Vienna Regional Court. The starting point for all of this is likely to have been disputes over wills, in the course of which the defendant fell out with her family.

After her company slipped into bankruptcy, the woman's anger was also directed at the Chamber of Commerce, which she felt had let her down.

Lawyer insulted commercial councilor on Facebook
She insulted a commercial councilor on Facebook and WhatsApp with words that were both harsh and unpleasant. "These were attempts at contact as part of my conflict management," said the accused. She had felt "helpless" at the time, and "the odd swear word late at night" may have been used: "But I didn't insult him!"

Accused allegedly demanded commission
The accused even demanded a commission from another functionary, whom she called "Kanaille", among other things, and backed up her demand with blatant death threats. "The wording was inappropriate. I was offended. I probably overreacted."

Judge: "These are call tirades"
She was completely unreasonable with regard to the accusations coming from her own family. In this regard, the public prosecutor was able to rely on the results of a call data trace, which revealed that the woman had carried out downright telephone terror on her relatives. "These are call tirades," Judge Martina Krainz accused the defendant, "you virtually bombarded her daughter and her sister with calls."

Defense denies accusations
The defense lawyer denied this, saying that the intensity and duration of the calls were not sufficient to be able to speak of an unreasonable interference with her lifestyle. His client had called "out of helplessness, out of anger".

Inheritance reduced by half
In 2021, the defendant had to take note of the fact that her elderly mother had changed her will. Her share of the inheritance was reduced by half because she was allegedly not taking sufficient care of her mother. Her sister is said to have largely taken over. The will was allegedly changed mainly at the instigation of the defendant's daughter, who "dragged" her grandmother to the notary, as the defendant claimed: "She (the testator, note) was taken by surprise."

She then "wanted to talk" to her daughter and her sister. She could not remember exactly how often and that she did not leave them alone for two years: "I can't remember exactly, it was so long ago."

The trial was adjourned for additional evidence to be taken. A number of witnesses are expected at the next hearing in mid-February.