First off, there is no such thing as a "bastard" and hasn't been for decades following a series of legislation that was passed both by EU member states and the EU itself. European mentality has changed hugely over the decades. In Belgium itself, the public opinion has long sided with Delphine Boël, so in the eyes of the public she is just another child of the king. I happen to know Belgium very very well.
Regardless however, the psychology abandoned (because this is abandonment) children is very well documented and studied by researchers, and I believe her when she says she wanted the recognition for moral reasons. She is actually rich in her own right.
As for the money, no trust can protect Albert's property unless he actually disinherits his daughter, but even then the Belgian courts, which follow the Napoleonic code, will grant her something. Again, I doubt this is her goal, but this is also the law. Spouses in Belgium are not entitled to property actually, so Paola does not come before Delphine or any of the children. What spouses can legally get is a pension, if they do not have their own, and the right to live in the marital home for the rest of their rights. However, they do not own it. Of course, in the case of Paola, money may have been settled on her (within reason), of which she is actually the owner. She may also own real estate.
Incidentally, spouses pay a much higher inheritance tax, in the event that they inherit when there are no children, than first degree (i.e. blood relatives). So, for example, a Belgian close friend of mine left all her Belgian property to her husband. The state imposed him a humongous inheritance tax, so he found a way out. He resigned from any rights to her property in favor of her parents who had inherited all her foreign assets. Her parents paid a much smaller amount in taxes (he was actually paying the money for them), and, once they took possession of her Belgian property, gifted it to her husband. There are several ways, but disinheriting children completely is not an option.
You will remember of course that the same law about children applies to other European countries. Albert II of Monaco was forced to acknowledge paternity of his two out of wedlock children. They stand to inherit equal parts of his personal fortune, which he has not tried to stop by disinheriting them, of course. The recognition of children has been declared a human right by the EU, and even though Monaco is not a member, it does comply with both several EU laws and with European tradition.
Again, I don't believe Delphine Boël did this for money, and I applaud the Belgian courts and Belgian democracy for showing the world nobody is above the law. They not only forced him to admit paternity (as I had predicted years ago, in this forum too, to the indignation of members -why on earth?), but they also slapped him with huge fines (5000 euro a day!) if he didn't comply with the court decision.
I've been following this case for many years, so I am familiar with its particulars, as well as being very familiar with Belgian law for other reasons.
1
Message Thread | This response ↓
« Back to index