Rose Porteous

Rose Porteous (née Lacson, born October 26, 1948) is a Filipino-born Australian socialite.

She was born in Silay City, Negros Occidental, Philippines, the daughter of Nicolas Lacson and Amparo Lacson. Her grandfather, General Aniceto Lacson, was a prominent military figure in Negros Occidental during the Philippine Revolution while her uncle, Arsenio Lacson, was the first elected mayor of Manila. [ cite book |author=Robert Wainwright |title=Rose: The Unauthorised Biography of Rose Hancock Porteous |publisher=Allen & Unwin |date=2003 |isbn=1865089346 |page=24] Porteous herself rose to prominence in the 1980s as the central figure in a series of lawsuits launched by her stepdaughter, Gina Rinehart, the daughter of Porteous's late husband, Australian iron ore pioneer, Lang Hancock. Porteous worked as a maid for Hancock, who became her third husband.

Not long after Hancock's death, his widow married her current husband, William Porteous, a Perth real estate agent. Gina Rinehart's lawsuits accused Rose Porteous of marrying Hancock only for his fortune and alleged that her stepmother's actions had contributed to her father's death.

Rose Porteous' brushes with the law include matters relating to insurance fraud and prescription fraud. In October 2005 it was reported that Porteous was being sued for $14 million by Melbourne-based law firm Slater & Gordon for legal fees they claimed she owed for representing her in Rinehart's lawsuits and eventually came to a settlement of $12.5 million. ["Rose's bill fight gives law 'bad name'", Nick Miller, "The West Australian", 1 October 2005]

After a brief stint in the tabloid media, Rose Porteous retreated to a quieter life in Perth and is regarded as a recluse by the locals, although she still occasionally appears on lifestyle programs for television.

In late March 2006 her Perth mansion "Prix d'Amour" was demolished, after being taken off the market. The mansion Rose and Lang Hancock created was an architectural spectacle featuring French doors and windows, parquetry and marble floors and wrought iron. The estate, set on 8100 square meters features the main house, two guest houses, a tennis court and two swimming pools. It has recently been subdivided into ten 800 square meter lots which were put on the market at $4.1 million.

The socialite has been reported as seriously ill and has suffered a recent stroke. She is recovering in the exclusive Perth suburb of Peppermint Grove. Recently she was dismissed on charges of prescription fraud because the active ingredient in the medication - midazolam - in the painkilling sedative hypnovel was not a prohibited drug. She was prescribed the medication after a fall in the late Prix d'Amour.

References

External links

* [http://www.abc.net.au/tv/enoughrope/transcripts/s892175.htm Porteous on "Enough Rope"]