Former heavyweight boxing champion Wladimir Klitschko has been granted temporary legal authority over the estate of his former fiancée, actor Hayden Panettiere, to safeguard the inheritance of their 11-year-old daughter, Kaya.
A California court approved the appointment on Thursday following an urgent petition filed by Wladimir last week. The former world champion raised concerns that belongings belonging to Hayden were being taken and that some of her jewellery had allegedly been offered for sale at a pawn shop by an unnamed non-family member.
According to court documents, the appointment was necessary to help recover property, coordinate with law enforcement agencies investigating Hayden’s death and ensure that her assets remained protected until a permanent estate administrator could be appointed. Her taxes also need to be filed this month.
“There is a high probability that property belonging to Hayden’s Estate may be lost, damaged or dissipated,” the petition stated.
Judge Stephanie Santoro granted Wladimir temporary guardianship of Kaya’s estate during a brief hearing conducted remotely. Hayden’s mother, Lesley Vogel, had filed a document consenting to the appointment.
Hayden, best known for her roles in television series Heroes and Nashville, was found unresponsive in an apartment in Greenville, South Carolina, on 16 August. She was 36. A coroner’s report obtained by investigators attributed her death to an accidental overdose involving several drugs, including fentanyl.
The actor had reportedly been in rehabilitation just weeks before her death. Her former partner and Kaya’s father, Wladimir, had shared custody arrangements with Hayden, with Kaya living with him in Ukraine for most of her life.
The couple began dating in 2009 and became engaged in 2013. Their daughter was born in 2014 and moved to live with Wladimir full-time when she was two.
In her memoir, released earlier this year, Hayden spoke about her struggles with alcohol addiction and postpartum depression following Kaya’s birth.
The temporary appointment is intended to preserve Hayden’s assets for her daughter until a long-term administrator can take over the estate.
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