Son of German brewing dynasty Veltins sues billionaire sister for a share of the family firm claiming his mother tricked him into signing away a fortune while hungover after his 18th birthday party

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The son of a German brewing dynasty is suing his sisters for a slice of the family business after claiming their mother tricked him into signing away his inheritance the morning after his boozy 18th birthday party. 

Carl-Clemens Veltins, whose family built a small brewery in the western village of Grevenstein into one of Germany's most successful beermakers, was horrified to learn upon the death of his mother Rosemarie in 1994 that he had been written out of the will.

Instead, the entire inheritance was awarded to his sisters Susanne and Frauke, the former of whom continues to lead the Veltins family empire and has been listed as a billionaire by Forbes. 

But when perusing the records of his family's estate eight years ago he discovered much to his chagrin that he had mistakenly relinquished his rights to a third of the family business. 

This, he claims, happened the morning after his 18th birthday, when his mother drove him to a notary and told him to sign a scrap of paper that she said was simply 'to avoid the brewery having to be sold if the heirs claimed their shares'.

Now, Carl-Clemens' lawyers are alleging his mother's 'immoral and void' actions mean the Veltins sisters owe their client a third of the family's money. 

If their claim is ultimately upheld, then the 'black sheep' of the Veltins family could come into a nine-figure fortune. 

Carl-Clemens Veltins claims his mother tricked him into signing away his inheritance the morning after his boozy 18th birthday party

Carl Clemens Veltins pictured in 2005 after being sentenced to a two-year pirson stint on drugs and firearms charges

Rosemarie Veltins died in 1994 and wrote her son out of her will, giving the family business to his sisters

Susanne Veltins continues to lead the brewery and is listed as a billionaire by Forbes 

For many years, Carl-Clemens thought he was simply being punished for his misdeeds. 

He has long been labelled the Veltins family 'black sheep' by German media thanks to a string of bad behaviour.

This included the burglary of his own mother's villa in 1984 and a string of convictions for the possession and dealing of cocaine, as well as illegal possession of a Kalashnikov automatic rifle he bought from Soviet soldiers after launching a nightclub in the city of Leipzig following the collapse of the Berlin wall. 

Besides, Carl-Clemens always knew Rosemarie wanted his older sister Susanne to take over the Veltins business empire.

But he alleges that, while perusing the records of his family's estate eight years ago, he made the shocking discovery that his mother had conspired to excise him from the Veltins fortune. 

'I was taken for a ride back then,' Carl-Clemens told German outlet Focus, claiming that he unwittingly waived his inheritance for the comparatively paltry sum of five million German marks. 

He alleges his mother pulled him out of bed the morning after his 18th birthday party and drove him still half-drunk to a notary's office, where an 'A5 piece of paper' was thrust under his nose.

'She said: ''Get up Clemens, we have to go to the notary and sign something. It's about business'',' he recounted.

'Essentially, it was about me foregoing my claim to the family business and the shares I am owed so that the brewery wouldn't have to be sold to pay out other family members in the event that my mother died.

'What son believes that his mother will betray him?' 

The jaded heir went on to claim he had a poor relationship with his mother whom he characterised as strict and controlling, which pushed him to rebel. 

'I was always an adventurous man, I liked taking risks. If I had got more attention as a ten-year-old, my path may have been a different one,' he told German outlet Bild. 

'My CV is certainly not one that tells the story of a saint. Looking back, I'm really not proud of a lot of the things that happened. But that doesn't mean that my family was allowed to ignore me the way they did.

'I would actually have been entitled to a third of the company shares. I didn't get anything from it.'

Veltins' turnover in 2023 alone was some 441 million euros

Veltins has evolved from a small and simple agricultural brewery to one of the largest private breweries in Europe

In a passage from Rosemarie's will, quoted by German business outlet Handelsblatt, the former Veltins CEO said that the five million marks paid her son prior to her death was 'sufficient'.

'My son Carl-Clemens Veltins has already received sufficient donations from me during his lifetime, so that, taking all the circumstances into account, further donations to him by way of inheritance or legacy are not justified. He and his descendants are excluded from legal succession,' the will reportedly states. 

But Carl-Clemens believes he should be entitled to the compulsory shares he would have received had his mother not removed him from the will. 

Veltins' turnover in 2023 alone was some 441 million euros.

The disgruntled would-be heir says that he tried to resolve the perceived slight peacefully back in 2016, but that his family was not receptive. 

Now, his lawyers are pursuing a suit against the Veltins sisters to claim back compensation Carl-Clemens believes he is rightfully owed. 

A statement provided to Handelsblatt by law firm Grant Thornton read: 'There is no doubt that Mr. Veltins was taken advantage of... All children are entitled to a ''minimum share in the inheritance''. 

'The systematic and complete exclusion of Mr. Veltins was therefore immoral... the mother took advantage of the complete innocence and trust of the son, who was inexperienced in business, to his detriment.' 

MailOnline has contacted Veltins Brewery representatives for comment.