Two wives are locked in a bitter inheritance battle over the £1.8million fortune of a bigamist accountant who married them both in Las Vegas five years apart without getting a divorce.
Wealthy James Dinsdale died of cancer, aged 55, in October 2020, leaving his vast estate to be fought over by his two spouses.
After his death, his most recent partner, beautician Margaret Dinsdale, 41, began sorting out his affairs on the assumption she would inherit his fortune as his next of kin.
But she was left reeling when she discovered James was still legally married to his first wife after he whisked Ms Dinsdale off for a Las Vegas wedding in 2017 – making their marriage ‘void’ and leaving her with no automatic right to inherit.
James had married cosmetic dentist, Dr Victoria Fowell, 53, in 2012 at a Vegas wedding chapel on the same street and only 1,960ft from where he wed Margaret five years later, but never got round to divorcing her – making her James’ heir alongside his adult son under intestacy laws.
However, the two women are now locked in a brutal High Court clash after Ms Dinsdale launched a claim to a share of James’ money on the basis she should be treated as a ‘spouse’ because she married him in ‘good faith.’
In a short preliminary hearing, High Court Judge James Brightwell heard Second World War history expert Mr Dinsdale built a thriving property development empire, based around central London, before he died.
He wed Dr Fowell – a St Albans-based dentist with an expertise in ‘cosmetic smile makeovers’ – in 2012, but the pair never got divorced and he went on to marry Ms Dinsdale in 2017.
New wife beautician Margaret Dinsdale, 41, married James Dinsdale in Las Vegas in 2017
But wealthy accountant Mr Dinsdale had not divorced his first wife, 53-year-old Dr Victoria Fowell (pictured) – who he also married in Vegas some five years earlier in 2012
Margaret’s barrister Jonathan Davey KC said his client and James met in 2008 and become friends, before beginning a ‘romantic relationship’ in 2014, setting up home together the following year.
However, she had no idea whatsoever he was still married, only learning of it after his death.
And because he had not made a will, James’ money would be divided between Dr Fowell and his son, William Dinsdale, 28.
‘Margaret believed she was validly married to James Dinsdale and there is no evidence she knew the deceased was married to Dr Fowell as of 2017,’ he said.
‘She understood the marriage between the deceased and Dr Fowell to have ended some time prior to the relationship between the deceased and the claimant beginning.
‘We have no idea what James’ state of mind was, perhaps he didn’t realise he wasn’t divorced.
‘Margaret’s assertion is that she believed the deceased to be unmarried and already divorced when she married him in good faith.’
Touching on their 2017 wedding in Las Vegas, he added: ‘The ceremony which took place between James and my client took place in almost the same location, and appears to have been of the same nature, as the earlier ceremony which took place between the deceased and Victoria Fowell in June 2012.
Mr Dinsdale (pictured) died of cancer, aged 55, in October 2020, leaving his vast estate to be fought over by the two women who both claim to be his wife
‘The marriage ceremony between him and Dr Fowell took place in the Little White Wedding Chapel, Las Vegas Boulevard. The marriage ceremony between James and Margaret took place in the Chapel of the Flowers, Las Vegas Boulevard.
‘But for the deceased’s prior marriage to Dr Fowell, the latter ceremony would have been a valid marriage ceremony.’
Celebrities who have wed at the Little White Wedding Chapel include Joan Collins, Rita Hayworth, Paul Newman and Joanne Woodward, Britney Spears, Jen Affleck and Jennifer Lopez and Frank Sinatra and Mia Farrow.
Meanwhile the Chapel of the Flowers offers the chance to be wed by a singing Elvis Presley impersonator for £935 plus tax.
The case reached court for a preliminary hearing after Margaret made a claim for ‘reasonable provision’ from James’ estate under the 1975 Inheritance Act, amounting to at least half of his £1.8m.
The case is being brought against Dr Fowell and James’ adult son William, who are currently due to share his fortune as his next of kin under intestacy rules.
Mr Davey said Margaret had looked after James ’24 hours per day’ during his final struggles with terminal cancer and was his ‘primary carer.’
Pictured is the Little White Wedding Chapel wedding venue, in Las Vegas Boulevard, where Mr Dinsdale married Dr Fowell in 2012
Pictured: the Chapel of the Flowers in Las Vegas, which is where Mr Dinsdale married his second wife. The venue is close to the chapel he wed his first wife at five years earlier
‘The evidence of his close friends is that James and Margaret had a loving relationship, and that he was very grateful for her care,’ he told the judge.
He said the couple had been together for six years and planned to have children, with Margaret giving up work and becoming a housewife while he provided for her.
‘She and James had a relatively lavish lifestyle, which was funded by his wealth and she was entirely financially dependent on the deceased,’ he said.
‘Dr Fowell and William Dinsdale were not being financially maintained by the deceased at the time of his death.’
There was no evidence of ‘financial need’ on the part of Dr Fowell, claimed Mr Davey, highlighting claims by Margaret that James once told her he had transferred to her a property and a £2m lump sum after their relationship ended.
The court heard it is alleged that Ms Dinsdale has already received £375,000 ‘from the estate or in sums derived from James,’ but Mr Davey said that is denied and she has only received £20,000 from his pension.
After a brief court hearing in which he was told it was ‘not disputed’ that Ms Dinsdale should be considered a ‘spouse’ under the 1975 Act, Judge Brightwell made a declaration to that effect for the purposes of her claim against the estate.
He directed there should now be a future hearing focusing on how James’ estate should be divided up between his two wives and son.
Under the Inheritance Act, payouts to those treated as a spouse or civil partner are higher than to unmarried partners of a deceased person.
The judge also allocated cash-strapped Ms Dinsdale £50,000 from the estate to help cover her bills and contribute towards hefty lawyers’ bills as the case progresses – with the projected costs on her side estimated at around £175,000.
