Naomi Campbell's Charity Ban Overturned: Tribunal Finds Deception

Supermodel Naomi Campbell has successfully challenged a five-year ban from serving as a charity trustee, with a tribunal ruling that she was a victim of deception by a former colleague. The ban, initially imposed in 2024 by the Charity Commission, stemmed from findings of serious mismanagement of funds at Fashion for Relief, a charity Campbell founded.

Reports at the time highlighted that charity funds were used for personal expenses, including a five-star hotel stay in Cannes, spa treatments, room service, and even cigarettes. However, Campbell brought a case to the First Tier Tribunal earlier this year to dispute the ban. In a judgment delivered on Thursday, the three-person tribunal sided with the supermodel.

Judges Joe Neville and James Armstrong-Holmes, along with a third member, found that while there was serious misconduct within Fashion for Relief, the most egregious aspects, such as unauthorized payments to co-trustee Bianka Hellmich, financial mismanagement, and misuse of funds, were a result of Ms.

Hellmich's conduct and were deliberately concealed from Campbell.

The judges explicitly stated that Ms.

Hellmich "used forged documents" and deceived professional advisers and the Charity Commission. They further clarified that Campbell was not involved in, nor aware of, this deceptive conduct. While Campbell shared some responsibility for the charity's failure to file accounts on time, the tribunal determined this did not make her unfit to be a trustee, especially given the sustained deception she faced.

Following the ruling, Campbell expressed her gratitude, stating,

I'm so grateful to the tribunal and the judges for taking the time to hear my side, look at the evidence, and see the truth of what happened.

She added, "Giving back has been part of who I am, so having that questioned hurt deeply. Now I can get back to what matters most to me: being there for the people and communities I've always wanted to serve." This outcome marks a rare occasion, understood to be only the second time a court has overturned a trustee disqualification order issued by the Charity Commission.

During a four-day hearing in June, Campbell testified that her "only mistake" was trusting Ms. Hellmich, whom she accused of forging her signature and misrepresenting her credentials as a charity lawyer. The Charity Commission had opposed Campbell's challenge, arguing the ban should remain.

However, the tribunal rejected the Commission's criticisms of Campbell's evidence, including suggestions that she was primarily focused on controlling the media narrative. Ms. Hellmich was disqualified for nine years, and another trustee, Veronica Chou, for four years, as a result of the Charity Commission's investigation into Fashion for Relief. With this victory, Naomi Campbell is now cleared to resume her philanthropic endeavors.

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