Swiss financier worth £860m is sued by maintenance man who worked for his English country estate over claims he was forced out of job and replaced by foreman's son

  • Urs Schwarzenbach, 61, owns sprawling estates near Henley, Oxfordshire
  • But the prominent polo player is being sued by former worker Derren Jones
  • Jones said he was told to leave two months after breaking Achilles tendon
  • Later that month his job was 'advertised word for word in local press'
  • Financier and his wife claimed they did not own estates' management firm 
  • But judge refused their bid to ditch case, saying they almost certainly did
  • Schwarzenbach is UK's 115th richest man and bought entire village in 2007

By Dan Bloom


One of Britain’s richest men is being sued by a maintenance worker who claims he was sacked from his vast country estate after injuring his foot.

Derren Jones claimed he was forced out of his job of two and a half years at the sprawling Oxfordshire estate of Swiss financier Urs Schwarzenbach, 61, and his wife Francesca.

Today an employment judge ruled the case against Britain's 115th richest man should go ahead - despite he and his wife claiming they did not own the management firm for their own estate.

Sued: Urs Schwarzenbach (pictured) is being sued by Derren Jones, who claimed he was forced out of his job of two and a half years at the tycoon's sprawling Oxfordshire estate after snapping a tendon in his foot
Sued: Urs Schwarzenbach is being sued by Derren Jones (pictured), who claimed he was forced out of his job of two and a half years at the tycoon's sprawling Oxfordshire estate after snapping a tendon in his foot

Sued: Urs Schwarzenbach (left) is being sued by Derren Jones (right), who claimed he was forced out of his job of two and a half years at the tycoon's sprawling Oxfordshire estate after snapping a tendon in his foot

The tycoon, who owns a polo team and is friends with members of the Royal family, founded Switzerland's largest foreign exchange dealership Interexchange.

He has lived in Britain for 25 years and is listed as the 115th richest person in Britain with a wealth of £860million by the 2014 Sunday Times Rich List.

 

He owns vast amounts of land near Henley-on-Thames, Oxfordshire including a sprawling 3,500-acre estate.

In 2007 that estate famously grew to take in the entire Buckinghamshire village of Hambleden, which was the backdrop for the ITV crime drama Midsomer Murders.

Mr Jones said he worked for the couple from June 2011 as an estate maintenance worker, first at their Thames Side Court estate and then at Culden Faw Estate, which employs 47 people, before he was asked to leave without notice in January this year.

His claim filed today at a preliminary hearing in Reading, Berkshire, said his redundancy came just two months after he snapped his Achilles tendon and had to wear a specialist boot.

Sprawling: The tycoon's vast mansion on the Culden Faw estate in Oxfordshire, which employs 47 people

Sprawling: The tycoon's vast mansion on the Culden Faw estate in Oxfordshire, which employs 47 people

He told how managers’ attitudes 'changed' towards him, and he was called into a meeting with Vanessa Vernon, the Thames Side Court Estate administration manager, on his return to work after Christmas to be told he was 'no longer needed'.

'I asked her (Miss Vernon) if there were any other jobs on the estate because I would rather be in work than out of work, opening the doors for some sort of negotiation,' his statement said.

'Vanessa said she would advise me if anything came up and I would be the first person they would consider and contact me, but there were no current roles.

'I had to leave at 9.30am to take my company van to my home and empty all of my tools.

'I didn’t even have time to say goodbye to my work colleagues who I’ve worked with for over two and a half years. I received a letter the following day confirming I was no longer required.'


'I didn’t even have time to say goodbye to my work colleagues who I’ve worked with for over two and a half years. I received a letter the following day confirming I was no longer required'

- Former maintenance worker Derren Jones


 

But a week after he left, the estate took on the son of his line manager Andy Scott, he said.

And later that month his job was advertised in the local press and online without him receiving a phone call, he added.

'This was very upsetting bearing in mind Vanessa Vernon said she would contact me if any jobs arose,' he said. 'I’ve subsequently found out they have taken on another person in place of me.'

Mr Jones said his former employers refused an appeal to review his dismissal, and said he has remained out of work since despite attending three job interviews.

'I am trying to secure work but I am finding this extremely difficult and am now suffering from depression,' he added.

Lawyers for Mr and Mrs Schwarzenbach unsuccessfully attempted to get the case thrown out at today's preliminary hearing - by claiming they had never directly employed Mr Jones.

The judge heard the couple were directors of Culham Faw Estate Limited, but the sole shareholder was Hambleden Estate Inc registered in the British Virgin Islands - a 'well-known tax haven'.

In turn, the sole shareholder of Hambleden Estate Inc was Black Bear Holdings SA - a foreign firm, the provenance of which remained a mystery.

But the couple did not attend the hearing to explain who owns which companies, earning them stern criticism from employment judge Robin Lewis.

Extensive: Another set of buildings on the Swiss tycoon and polo player's large estate near Henley-on-Thames

Extensive: Another set of buildings on the Swiss tycoon and polo player's large estate near Henley-on-Thames

Today he said their failure to attend 'could be viewed as an attempt to defeat the ends of justice.'

He ruled that they did employ Mr Jones, adding: 'No matter how far the chain (of companies) goes, there will eventually be a human hand operating it and pulling the strings.

'Culden Faw is owned by a chain of companies - we don’t know how many, we don’t know where they are, we don’t even know the names of all of them.

'We know two at least are offshore and one is in a well-known tax haven. I have no reason to doubt all of those arrangements are nothing other than proper and lawful.

'However, it is reasonable to infer all those arrangements have been put in place for the benefit, ultimately, of human beneficiaries.'

There was 'no evidence' of those beneficiaries being 'anyone outside the Schwarzenbach family', the judge added.

The estate (pictured) is owned through a chain of companies including in a 'well-known tax haven', the judge said. There was 'no evidence' of beneficiaries being 'anyone outside the Schwarzenbach family', he added

The estate (pictured) is owned through a chain of companies including in a 'well-known tax haven', the judge said. There was 'no evidence' of beneficiaries being 'anyone outside the Schwarzenbach family', he added

Mr Schwarzenbach owns an array of luxury properties across the world, including in Scotland and Australia.

He lives in a grand mansion at Culham Court, part of the Culden Faw estate, with his wife Francesca.

She is a former Miss Australia and a godmother of Lady Louise Windsor, the daughter of the Earl of Wessex.

The multi-millionaire also bankrolls his own successful polo team, the Black Bears, which is based on his sprawling 3,500-acre Culden Faw Estate, comprising of the Culham Estate, Hambleden Estate and a deer park at Henley Park, Fawley.

If the two parties fail to settle the claim, the full tribunal will go ahead in September.

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