The Most Cruel Fate

Dr. Doom's heir-ball

Kin face a big-bucks nightmare

BY BARBARA ROSS and ADAM LISBERG
DAILY NEWS STAFF WRITERS


The doctor who leveled his upper East Side townhouse in a demented suicide bid died
without a will - leaving his ex-wife and estranged daughters to sift through the financial mess he left behind.

According to court papers filed yesterday, Nicholas Bartha's estate still owes
$4 million to ex-wife Cordula Hahn, 64, and her lawyers - a debt from
their bitter divorce that would have forced the sheriff to seize and sell the
townhouse at 34 E. 62nd St.

It estimates the 124-year-old home - now just a pile of debris - was worth $4 million,
though observers say a prime vacant lot on the upper East Side could be worth
as much as $9 million.

The filing in Manhattan Surrogate's Court was made by Bartha's daughter Serena, 28,
with the assent of daughter Johanna, 27, and Hahn. In the absence of a will,
Serena is asking the court to appoint her administrator of her father's estate.

Under the terms of their parents' divorce settlement, the sisters appear to be
in line to both inherit 25% of the value of the property.

The filing says Bartha died with an estimated $100,000 in cash, while his debts
include a $5,000 hospital bill, the $5,730 tab for his Queens funeral
Wednesday, and an estimated $230,000 to reimburse the city for the
costs of clearing the rubble of his home.

At least one couple living next door has already sued Bartha and Con Ed.
Bartha, 66, apparently rigged a basement gas line so he could destroy his
beloved home rather than move out and watch it be sold.

"This is going to be a lawyers' employment act here," said attorney Scott Mollen,
who is not connected to the case. "The litigation could take years to resolve."