Nun in legal battle with Katy Perry dies after collapsing in court

A nun involved in a lawsuit against pop star Katy Perry over the sale of a convent in Los Angeles has died after collapsing during a court appearance.

Sr Catherine Rose Holzman (89) had served the Catholic Church "with dedication and love for many years", the archbishop of Los Angeles, Jose Gomez, said in a statement following her death.

Sr Holzman was a member of an order of elderly nuns involved in a dispute over the sale of their convent in the Los Feliz neighbourhood.

Hours before her death, Sr Holzman spoke to television station KTTV, decrying a judge’s ruling that cleared the way for the archdiocese of Los Angeles to sell the convent to Perry.

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“To Katy Perry, please stop,” she said.

“It’s not doing anyone any good except hurting a lot of people.”

At the centre of the legal dispute is the property Sr Holzman and other members of the Sisters of the Immaculate Heart of Mary had once lived in.

Sr Holzman and other members of the order had sought to sell the hilltop property for $15.5 million (€12.6 million) to restaurateur Dana Hollister, who wanted to convert it into a hotel.

The archdiocese of Los Angeles sued to block that sale in 2015, arguing the nuns did not have authority to sell the property to Hollister. A judge ruled in 2016 that the sale was invalid, paving the way for Perry to buy the site from the archdiocese.

“I was sad to hear the news of her [Sr Holzman’s] passing and I have offered a Mass for the repose of her soul,” the archbishop said.

“We extend our prayers today to the Immaculate Heart of Mary community and to all her friends and loved ones.” – PA and Reuters