Court Overturns $84-Million Palimony Award

A state appeals court Monday overturned an $84-million palimony award to a woman who lived, worked and shared a name with flashlight mogul Anthony Maglica, saying that her work in building his business did not entitle her to a share of it.

But the 4th District Court of Appeal ordered a new trial on the dispute, saying that the jury that made the award in 1994 was given erroneous instructions on how to value Claire Maglica’s services.

By ordering the trial, the appeals court gave Claire Maglica another chance to persuade jurors that her former companion promised her a share of Mag Instrument Inc. during the 21 years they lived together. The couple broke up in 1992.

A Superior Court jury rejected Claire Maglica’s claim of breach of contract in 1994, finding that there had been no agreement to share the business. She was awarded the $84 million for the reasonable value of her services.

But in the 3-0 ruling handed down Monday and made public Tuesday, the appeals court said Judge Robert Polis had wrongly instructed the 1994 jury that it could measure the value of Maglica’s services by the amount of their benefit to her.