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I Once Banked at Mellon
Matthew Mellon fights £30m law suit brought by ex-girlfriend Noelle
FirstPost.co.uk
Matthew Mellon, a scion of the super wealthy American banking family and former husband of Tamara Mellon, of Jimmy Choo shoes fame, must rue the day he began a romance with Noelle Reno. She is the willowy blonde, nearly 20 years his junior, who was until May his business partner in their cashmere clothing company, Degrees of Freedom. She has just landed Mellon, 43, with an extraordinary £30 million law suit.
Mellon, who has a history of drug problems, is facing a 21-page writ from Reno, which accuses him of going on crack-cocaine binges and alleges he wrongly accused her of embezzling business funds. The court papers reveal that at one stage, because of his "repeated drug relapses", Reno made Mellon sign a contract to pay her $1 million if he started taking drugs again. She made it clear she would have nothing to do with him if "his persistent pattern of drug abuse" continued.
The deal was signed in February. It said that if Mellon "ingested cocaine or other similar drugs within the next six months and it rendered him unable to interact normally with other people for more than two days", he would have to give her the money plus control of their business. Reno claims that Mellon’s behaviour deteriorated and so she attempted to enforce her rights.
Says Reno’s lawyer, Gary Sommerstein: "She fell very much in love. She moved to Britain, started a company from scratch and was successful beyond all expectations, only to be fired after working for three years for free. All she wants is what she is entitled to and what she has earned."
Mellon’s lawyer, Andrew Morrison, gives a different story. "He does not accept these allegations and we will be contesting the case. Far from appearing as the victim, these papers portray her as opportunistic and predatory."
