A mother who fell to her death from an apartment block was locked in a bitter legal dispute with her celebrity antiques dealer ex-fiancé over their £2.7million London home.
Rachel O'Hare, 49, had claimed in court statements that Owen Pacey, 60, had locked her out of their five–storey Georgian mansion in Spitalfields.
The couple were formerly engaged, but were set to face each other across a courtroom later this year in a battle over the property.
But Ms O’Hare was found dead on June 30 after a fall from the Manchester apartment where she had been living.
Tributes poured in for Ms O’Hare, a mother-of-three and the co-founder of charity Elle for Elle which helps vulnerable women in refuges.
Her death came just four days after the latest court hearing, in Leeds, in her legal dispute with Mr Pacey.
She had claimed the Spitalfields property is rightfully hers, the Mail reports, and claimed Mr Pacey had locked her out, refused to allow her to collect her possessions, failed to pay the bills, and threatened to “trash” the interior.
Mr Pacey, an antique fireplace expert with clients including Mick Jagger, Kate Winslet, Naomi Campbell, and Orlando Bloom, was disputing the claims and had filed a defence to Ms O’Hare’s legal case.
Police have said there are no suspicious circumstances around Ms O’Hare’s death.
In the court battle, she claimed Mr Pacey persuaded her to buy the 18th Century house in Wilkes Street, east London, in their joint names, in June 2021.
She said she took out a loan and put in the divorce settlement from her first marriage, to a millionaire investment manager, to pay for the home.
Ms O’Hare claimed Mr Pacey “had no money to contribute when the property was purchased”, but had promised to “pay for his share in due course”.
He had also put his £5 million fireplace business in her name as a security, she said.
In his defence to the legal case, Mr Pacey denied persuading Ms O'Hare to buy the home in their joint names, and also denied a formal agreement to pay for half the property.
“The parties (Ms O'Hare and Mr Pacey) were going to get married and there was just no discussion about who owned what”, his defence document said.
He denies threatening to “trash” the property or refusing to pay bills, and adds that he put money into the renovation of the home.
He also denied not allowing Ms O'Hare access to the property.
Mr Pacey had invited journalists into the property in 2021 and 2022, for features showing off the Italian marble fireplaces, antique chandeliers, and wood flooring made from reclaimed parts of the Sadler’s Wells theatre stage.
Mr Pacey has been contacted by The Standard for comment.
