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Date Published: 19/07/2023

Former Spanish king demands UK high court dismiss harassment case

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The colourful emeritus king of Spain is being sued by an ex-lover for 146 million euros in London

Former Spanish king demands UK high court dismiss harassment case

New UK lawyers hired by the disgraced former monarch of Spain, Juan Carlos I, have asked the British Justice to dismiss harassment charges filed against him by one-time lover Corinna Larsen, a Dutch businesswoman now in her 50s. The emeritus king’s ex-partner is seeking 146 million euros in damages at a London hearing that is expected to last until Friday July 21.

The timing of this latest court appearance is curious since in recent days associates of Juan Carlos have claimed he plans to return to Spain to live full-time if the conservative PP wins the upcoming general election. PP leader Alberto Núñez Feijóo, who is widely expected to be elected as the new head of the government later this month, has previously stated that the former monarch is welcome to move home once his legal issues are resolved.

The main argument of the defence is that the UK courts aren’t competent to hear the claim against Juan Carlos, since article 4 of the EU regulation on jurisdiction stipulates that citizens domiciled in a Member State should be tried in that country.

British firm Velitor Law also questions Larsen’s credibility, claiming that she has already changed her story several times.

Adam Wolanski KC argued her case had “no realistic” prospect of success and that evidence “simply does not disclose a viable case”.

He said: “The pleaded case of harassment is a diffuse collection of complaints, some trivial, mostly historic.” He added: “Many of the matters the claimant relies on are subject to state immunity.”

He said Juan Carlos “emphatically denies ever having harassed the claimant”.

Larsen claims the former king, who abdicated the Spanish throne in 2014, hired members of the national intelligence agency to harass her and her family after she ended their five-year affair.

According to her lawyers, agents working for Juan Carlos broke into her Monaco and Switzerland homes in 2021 and left a threatening message in the form of a book about Princess Diana’s death on her coffee table.

However, back in December the Court of Appeals for England and Wales sided with the ex-monarch and ruled that he is legally immune from any transgressions he may have committed prior to his abdication.

So although Larsen’s lawsuit places the time frame of the alleged harassment between 2012 and 2020, the British courts can only judge on events that happened after 2014.

Also of interest: Who will win the Spanish general election next Sunday?

Image: Sebastián Piñera via Wikimedia Commons

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