A lawsuit filed by the widow of Niki Lauda is pending in the Vienna Regional Court, and the essence of the lawsuit is that 44-year-old Birgit, the mother of his twin children Mia and Max, has received a significant increase of its share of the legacy of the legendary Austrian racer.
The three-time world champion died in May 2019, but he took care of the future of his two families in advance, tried to do everything possible so that there were no property and financial disputes between the heirs, for which he created a special fund, from which he entrusted management to his friends.
However, according to the Vienna newspaper Kurier, Birgit Lauda has filed two separate lawsuits to withdraw a total of nearly 30 million euros from the fund. Naturally, this causes sharp indignation from people who were once friends of the former Formula 1 driver.
“Birgit has started all these proceedings, although the rest of the family is in full agreement with Nicky’s order, they respect his will and are willing to defend it in court,” the paper quoted an unnamed family friend as saying.
According to the Austrian edition, Lauda reasonably took into account the needs of the heirs and Birgit receives 20 thousand euros per month. These funds will be transferred to her and her children by the fund set up by Lauda, and in addition, he will cover the costs of maintaining a house in Vienna and a villa on the island of Ibiza, three cars; also provides for the payments of servants and expenses for the education of the twins.
It is not yet clear how the trial will end, but according to the Austrian press, the legal costs alone could amount to more than 300 thousand euros, as the case involves millions of dollars. Birgit herself, née Wetzinger, who once worked as a flight attendant aboard one of the Lauda Air planes, refuses to comment on what is happening.
Niki Lauda founded his foundation in 1997 after his divorce from his first wife, from whom he has two sons, Lukas and Mattias, and long before he met Wetzinger.
Source: F1 News
I am Christopher Clyde, an experienced journalist and content writer with a passion for sports. I have been writing about Formula 1 news for the past five years and am currently employed as an author at athletistic.com, one of the top sports websites in the US.
