A new chapter has opened in one of the most bitter disputes in luxury corporate history, as Hermès heir Nicolas Puech has filed a civil lawsuit against LVMH CEO Bernard Arnault and his conglomerate, LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton SE. The massive suit seeks to recover damages equivalent to the value of shares Puech claims were sold without his knowledge, estimated today at a staggering €14 billion.
Puech, 82, a fifth-generation descendant of the Hermès founder, alleges that he was deprived of approximately six million shares in the Birkin handbag maker. He claims his now-deceased former wealth manager, Eric Freymond, illicitly transferred these shares to Arnault and LVMH during the period when the French conglomerate was controversially and secretly amassing a 23% stake in Hermès over a decade ago.
The civil lawsuit, filed in a Paris court in May 2025, proceeds in parallel with an ongoing criminal investigation in France concerning the alleged disappearance of Puech’s fortune. LVMH and Arnault have vehemently denied any wrongdoing. In a statement, LVMH “firmly reaffirm[ed] that they never, at any time, misappropriated shares of Hermès International.”
The Hermès Heir Lawsuit Bernard Arnault LVMH once again pits two of the world’s most powerful luxury dynasties against each other. The high-profile case highlights the deep-seated rivalries and complex financial maneuvering that characterize the competitive, multi-billion-euro world of high-end French luxury goods.
