Legacy of the Elder: the closure of the succession is postponed again
The closure of the succession of Leonardo Del Vecchio has been postponed to a date to be determined. The six heirs of the founder of Luxottica, namely his children Claudio, Marisa, Paola, Leonardo Maria, Luca and Clemente, together with the two legatees, the widow Nicoletta Zampillo and her son Rocco Basilico, they have not yet found an agreement to unblock the situation. As reported by La Repubblica, the focus is always on the governance of the Dolphinthe Luxembourg holding company that controls the EssilorLuxottica group, with stakes in Covivio, Mediobanca and Generali.
The disagreements between the heirs emerged during the Delfin meeting in early June, when the shareholders were called to approve the balance sheet and the distribution of dividends for the 2023 financial year, which amount to 890 million euros from EssilorLuxottica and other subsidiaries. While the budget was approved, the distribution of dividends was blocked by the firm opposition of three partners: Luca, Clemente and Paola, who accepted the succession with the benefit of inventory two years ago. The distribution of dividends requires a two-thirds majority (six votes out of eight), but the three votes against prevented any distribution to the partners, except for the minimum of 10% of profits already anticipated in the fall. 5% of the profits were allocated to the Del Vecchio Foundation, as provided for by the statute.
The three opposing partners insist that a unanimous agreement be reached to modify the statute before proceeding with the closure of the successionthe payment of legacies and the forfeiture of the benefit of inventory. On the contrary, the other four members of the family, namely Marisa, Leonardo Maria, Zampillo and Basilico, would prefer to close the succession immediately and then work on the definition of the new Delfin statute. The lawyers of the various parties have already outlined the contours of the main technical issues, including a temporal duration of the Delfin board of directors, the raising of the minimum threshold for the distribution of dividends and the exit modalities for the members.
Despite this, there is still a lack of unanimous will to change what Leonardo Del Vecchio had established: exclude family members from Delfin’s board of directors and entrust the management for an indefinite period to Francesco Milleri, Romolo Bardin and Mario Notariwho have full autonomy in investment decisions. However, the family members have asked to be informed of the most important decisions.
In the absence of a family agreement, a possible turning point could come from the court, which is examining a lawsuit filed by legatee Francesco Milleri against the status of the inventory graduation decided by some heirs. The litigation will take several more months to reach a verdict. In addition, notary Cesare Gattoni has taken over the succession practice following disagreements between the family and Mario Notari on the amount of the fee, giving rise to further legal litigation. Notari had been chosen as a consultant by Leonardo Del Vecchio and indicated on the boards of directors of Delfin and EssilorLuxottica.
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