The Vatican, home of the Catholic Church, an expensive London building and an alleged multi-million-pound fraud lawsuit heads to the London High Court on Wednesday (today) for trial.
The dispute stems from a corruption scandal related to the Vatican’s purchase of an expensive landmark property, a former Harrods depository, in Chelsea from Athena Capital Fund.
The Vatican bought the property for €350m (£295.5m) in 2012 with the intention of converting it into luxury apartments, but after problems arose with the project, the Vatican later sold the building at a loss of about £100m.
British-Italian City financier Raffaele Mincione acted as investment manager for the Vatican Secretariat of State from 2014 to 2018 and ultimately sold the London property in 2022 to Bain Capital.
The Vatican began criminal proceedings in mid-2021 against Mincione, Cardinal Giovanni Angelo Becciu and several other officials in the Secretariat.
According to a statement Mincione gave to the press, his bank accounts were frozen after the Vatican began criminal proceedings.
The Vatican alleged the Secretariat substantially overpaid for the property and its actions were linked to corruption and fraud.
The criminal proceedings concluded at the end of last year, with Mincione found guilty of embezzlement and money laundering, which he plans to appeal. Cardinal Becciu was also found guilty of embezzlement and fraud.
Mincione, along with his fund, Athena Capital, launched legal proceedings against the Vatican’s governing body, the Secretariat of State of the Holy See.
The case was launched into the English Commercial Court in 2020 and there have been several back-and-forths over the years. It is heading for a 12-day trial starting on Wednesday in front of Mr Justice Robin Knowles at the Rolls Building.
Mincione aims to seek declaratory relief stating that the claimants have no liability regarding the property’s purchase.
The claimants are represented by partner Peter Wood from Withers, barristers Tetyana Nesterchuk from Fountain Court, Charles Samek KC, and Blathnaid Breslin from Littleton Chambers.
While for its first-known appearance in the English court, the Vatican has instructed Brick Court Chambers Charles Hollander KC, Atkin Chambers Samar Abbas Kazmi and XXIV Old Buildings James Bradford. The barristers have been called on by law firm Hill Dickinson partner Paul Walsh.