The story of Richard Joy, a 82-year-old British retired, has become a central theme of a legal dispute in Harrow, England. The man, who lived a lifetime in the same house valued at more than 750,000 euros, eventually delivered the property to Mariia Romanyshyn as an inheritance, a Ukrainian maid he met in a local coffee. Now the family disputes the decision in court, claiming that Joy was not in a position to understand the reach of his choice. The case dates back to 2016.
According to the Spanish newspaper Noticias Work, Joy met Romanyshyn in 2011, when she worked at Cafper Crust cafeteria. The relationship has been narrowing over the years until the maid and his family have moved to live with the retired. In court, Romanyshyn recalled that he encouraged her to feel at home: “Mi desires that this will be family,” he said.
DRAFT CASE TO 2016
The maid says that in 2016, Joy handed him the deeds of the property, with the words: “I have a gift to you. The house is yours. I want you to be with her.” The gesture was not surprised, as the retired would have previously expressed him the intention of including it in the will, even asking him for personal data to leave him a diamond ring.
The problem arises because the official will, written by Joy in 2011, intended most of the property to Cousin Martin Larney, his mother and a close friend.
Larney, who is also the perpetrator of the inheritance, considers that the retired was vulnerable and dependent on the employee in recent years, which would undermine the validity of the new document.
Women’s influence on the elderly
According to the accusation, cited by the same source, Romanyshyn not only lived in the house with his family while Joy occupied only a quarter, but also managed the finances, medical appointments and routines of the elderly. For Larney’s lawyer Andrew Nicklin, this put her in a position of direct influence on the testator.
The defense, in turn, rejects any scenario of manipulation, according to the source mentioned above. Romanyshyn’s lawyer stressed that Joy never had a diagnosis of dementia and continued to perform everyday tasks such as going to the pub, shopping or using public transport. He added that neither she nor the family received financial compensation for the support provided: “Joy was treated as a more family member.”
Already the employee also evoked the emotional connection she maintained after the death of the retired in 2018: “I still organize a commemorative service all the Christmas and I leave flowers in your campaign. Mr. Larney does none of these things.”
Case went to court
The litigation around Richard Joy’s house, evaluated in over 750,000 euros, came to an end at Central London County Court on March 31, 2025.
After several years of dispute between the retired family and the Ukrainian maid Mariia Romanyshyn, Judge Simon Monty KC approved an agreement that determined the rejection of the latter’s claim. Thus, according to, the 2011 manuscript will prevailed, in which Joy left most of his inheritance to Cousin Martin Larney, his mother and a close friend.
Although Romanyshyn had claimed that Joy handed him the deeds of the house in 2016 as a gift, justice considered only the initial will. From that moment on, the inheritance formally passed to the legal heirs, ending the legal dispute.
Still, some media refer that the employee resisted to abandon the housing after the sentence, prolonging the controversy beyond the legal outcome.
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