Decisive court ruling in Bettencourt-L'Oreal saga
Liliane Bettencourt placed under guardianship of family members
A French court has ruled decisively in the long running Bettencourt-L'Oréal saga. Liliane Bettencourt, the major shareholder in L'Oréal and suffering from dementia, has been placed under the guardianship of family members. The family's voting rights in the company will continue to be exercised through the family holding group.
Bettencourt's daughter, Francoise, has re-emphasised the family's strong attachment to the cosmetics major group and its future development. The family controls 30.9% of L'Oréal's capital with Nestlé holding 29.7%. Francoise Bettencourt said the court's decision regarding her mother in no way affected the agreement reached in 2004 between the family and Nestlé. The 2004 accord envisaged that up to 2014, each would have a right of pre-emption over the shares of the other. Following the court ruling, L'Oréal's shares moved up 2.1%.