Guardian suggested for heiress

A specially appointed medical panel is recommending that Liliane Bettencourt, the elderly L'Oréal heiress, be protected by a guardian because of her deteriorating health, according to the newspaper Le Monde.

The panel's members did not examine Mrs. Bettencourt, 88, the newspaper said, but based their opinion on her medical records.

Her lawyer, Pascal Wilhelm, declined to comment Tuesday "due to the current situation."

Mrs. Bettencourt's daughter, Françoise Bettencourt-Meyers, has asked for court-appointed guardianship; France's highest appeals court will review the request to determine whether it can be imposed without Mrs. Bettencourt's support.

(Published by NY Times - June 14, 2011)