A £19million mansion in Regent's Park where Charles Dickens wrote Great Expectations is at the centre of a legal battle that could see it seized over an unpaid mortgage.
Deborah Fiorentino, 63, former wife of Italian aristocrat Giovanni Fiorentino, is being sued by Banque Havilland, a Luxembourg private bank, over claims she owes more than £10million.
The bank has asked a judge to order Fiorentino to hand over possession of the historic property linked to the English novelist.
Fiorentino, a former estate agent, has built her own portfolio of luxury properties in London's wealthiest areas.
A £19 million mansion in Regent's Park where Charles Dickens wrote Great Expectations is at the centre of a legal battle that could see it seized over an unpaid mortgage
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She married Giovanni Fiorentino in the early 1990s, having two children with him and living in his Naples properties.
After that marriage ended, she wed celebrity divorce solicitor Raymond Tooth, known as "Jaws", who represented high-profile clients including Irina Abramovich in her divorce from Roman Abramovich and Sadie Frost during her split from Jude Law.
Fiorentino and Tooth separated in 2008.
The legal dispute centres on a £17.85million loan Fiorentino took out against the mansion, a mews house and a third property in Hampstead.
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English novelist Charles Dickens spent the summer of 1861 writing his 13th and arguably most famous novel while in the property
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Michael Walsh KC, representing the bank, told Judge Nicholas Parfitt that Fiorentino had been "persistently unable to meet her obligations" and had made "no interest payment whatsoever since December 2022".
Fiorentino's lawyer, Thomas Rothwell, countered that she had been "treated unreasonably" by the bank, which had blocked a refinancing deal, costing her millions in extra outgoings and interest.
The judge has reserved his decision until a later date.
The seven-bedroom mansion overlooks the Regent's Park boating lake and was where Dickens spent the summer of 1861 whilst writing his 13th and arguably most famous novel.
The writing desk and chair of author Charles Dickens, on which he penned a number of his later novels and short stories, including Great Expectations
PA
The property was designed by John Nash, the neo-classical architect responsible for Buckingham Palace and Marble Arch.
Following recent renovations, the historic home now includes modern amenities such as a gym and sauna.
Fiorentino is currently listed as a director of a London design company called Ultimate Luxury Living.
