Mitch Winehouse Sues Over Amy Memorabilia, Judge Says No, No, No

A British court has rejected a lawsuit filed by Mitch Winehouse, the father of late singer Amy Winehouse, over the sale of some of her clothing and personal belongings.

In a ruling issued Friday, a judge at the UK High Court dismissed Mitch Winehouse’s claim that two women close to his daughter—her stylist Naomi Parry and her friend Catriona Gourlay—had secretly sold items that should have been turned over to Amy Winehouse’s estate. The judge concluded there was no evidence that the women intentionally hid the items and said Mitch Winehouse could have determined what they possessed if he had made reasonable efforts to do so.

Parry said during the dispute that Mitch Winehouse offered her $250,000 in exchange for the proceeds from her auction sales and for dropping the legal claim. She said she refused the proposal, stating she would rather burn the money than give it to him.

Parry and Gourlay argued that the belongings in question had either been given to them by Amy Winehouse or were already their property. The disagreement centered on auctions held in the United States in 2021 and 2023. Those sales came after a larger auction in 2021 that included 834 items and raised about $1.4 million for the estate. Thirty percent of the proceeds from that larger sale went to the Amy Winehouse Foundation.

Among the items Parry sold was a silk mini dress Amy Winehouse wore during her final performance, which sold for $243,200.

In his ruling, the judge criticized Mitch Winehouse’s testimony, describing him as an unreliable witness and saying he had pursued the case without thoroughly verifying the basis of his claim. The judge also noted that Mitch Winehouse has strong concerns about preserving his daughter’s legacy as well as the financial interests of the family.

After the decision, Parry said the ruling fully cleared her of wrongdoing and argued that the lawsuit should not have been filed in the first place.

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