Amy Winehouse's Dad Mitch Loses Court Battle Against Late Singer's Friends Who Auctioned Off $1.2 Million Worth of Her Clothes

Rachel DeSantisMon, April 20, 2026 at 10:01 PM UTC

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Mitch Winehouse and Amy Winehouse in London in February 2008.Credit: JMEnternational/Getty -

A judge dismissed Mitch Winehouse's lawsuit against Amy Winehouse's friends over the sale of her clothing

The friends argued the items were gifted to them by Amy before her death and denied wrongdoing

Naomi Parry and Catriona Gourlay were longtime friends of Amy, who died in 2011

A London judge has dismissed the lawsuit brought against two of Amy Winehouse's closest friends by the late singer's father Mitch over the sale of her clothing at auction.

Mitch's claim against Amy's friends Catriona Gourlay and Naomi Parry was dismissed on Monday, April 20, years after they sold $1.2 million worth of the “Back to Black” singer's wardrobe items at auctions in 2021 and 2023 allegedly without his knowledge.

Parry and Gourlay had argued that all 141 items they sold — including the silk dress Amy wore at her final performance in Serbia — either already belonged to them or had been gifted to them by Amy before her tragic death in 2011 at age 27, according to court documents viewed by PEOPLE.

Mitch, meanwhile, who is the administrator of his daughter's estate, claimed the women were not entitled to sell the items, and that they “deliberately concealed” the sales.

Amy Winehouse performing at Coachella in an undated image.Credit: Gary Miller/FilmMagic

“Mr. Winehouse is clearly a strong character but also someone who has suffered a great tragedy in the loss of his daughter. Since Amy's death he has worked hard to keep her memory alive… It is also the case that Amy's Estate… has made Mr. Winehouse personally extremely wealthy,” Judge Sarah Clarke said. “Mr. Winehouse is therefore understandably sensitive about anyone who he perceives as exploiting Amy's memory, particularly for financial gain, and he is keen to promote the [Amy Winehouse Foundation], but also in my judgment, he is equally sensitive about ensuring that the family continue to benefit financially.”

As an example, Clarke said that Mitch had initially considered participating in what would become the 2021 auction, and said that all proceeds would go to the Amy Winehouse Foundation. But by the time the auction actually took place, he'd “changed his mind,” and wanted 30% of the proceeds going to the foundation, and the other 70% going to the estate.

Naomi Parry (L) and Catriona Gourlay in Los Angeles in January 2020.Credit: Amanda Edwards/Getty

“The evidence shows that in addition to Mr. Winehouse's many good qualities, he likes to dominate people and situations and expects people to do what he wants,” Clarke said.

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An attorney for Winehouse did not immediately respond to PEOPLE's request for comment.

The court documents claim that Mitch offered Parry $250,000 in exchange for what she'd earned from the auction and to “make this all go away,” and Parry allegedly told him she'd “rather set the money on fire than give him a penny.”

The judge also cited the fact that Amy was “known to be extremely generous to her friends,” and often freely gave away her possessions in dismissing the case against Parry and Gourlay.

In a video statement shared to Instagram after the ruling, Parry expressed gratitude that the court had “cleared my name, unequivocally and in full after years of deeply damaging and unfounded allegations brought by Mitch Winehouse.”

“I stood beside Amy as a friend, a creative partner and her costume designer,” said Parry, who worked with Winehouse from 2006 until her death. “What we shared was built on trust, loyalty and a genuine love of the work. To see that relationship misrepresented so publicly has been both painful and profoundly unjust. This judgment restores the truth.”

Parry also shared a throwback photo of herself with Amy and tagged Gourlay, who had been friends with the late Grammy winner since 2002.

on People

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Source: “AOL Entertainment”