A London judge has ordered Mitch Winehouse to make nearly £1 million in interim payments to two of his late daughter Amy Winehouse’s friends after he lost a lawsuit over memorabilia sales.
Why the original claim failed
Mitch Winehouse sued former stylist Naomi Parry and friend Catriona Gourlay over items connected to the singer that were sold at auctions in 2021 and 2023. The women said the possessions had been given or lent to them and denied acting dishonestly.
The High Court rejected the claim earlier this year. In the latest costs ruling, Judge Sarah Clarke said Winehouse had pursued an inherently weak case aggressively and had made unfounded allegations that harmed the women’s reputations and wellbeing.
The financial consequences
The court ordered interim payments of £569,330 to Parry and £394,521 to Gourlay. Winehouse was also ordered to pay their legal costs on an indemnity basis, a standard generally used when the court considers a party’s conduct unreasonable.
The ruling concerns ownership claims and litigation conduct; it does not change Amy Winehouse’s musical legacy or the separate charitable work conducted in her name. The singer died in 2011 at age 27.
Sources: The Guardian and Sky News
