Minnie Driver's feud with her neighbor erupts again

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A vicious feud between actress Minnie Driver and her Hollywood Hills neighbor has erupted again, more than a year after she won a major court victory in the battle that's raged for more than three years.

In new court papers obtained by DailyMail.com, grandfather-of-seven Daniel Perelmutter accuses the Speechless star of 'outrageous and malicious' behavior, screaming insults and obscenities at him, driving at him in her car, causing $20,000 worth of damage to his property and threatening to have his construction workers 'deported'. 

And to add insult to injury, the 76-year-old army veteran and heart transplant survivor claims that after winning her lawsuit against him last year, he videotaped Driver 'gloating…. telling him that she was so glad he got 'f****d' and wishing that he lose everything as a result'. 

Face-off: Daniel Perelmutter and Minnie Driver share a driveway between their Hollywood Hills, California, properties but are have long been at odds Face-off: Daniel Perelmutter and Minnie Driver share a driveway between their Hollywood Hills, California, properties but are have long been at odds

In new court papers obtained by DailyMail.com, Daniel Perelmutter (left) accuses Minnie Driver (right) of 'malicious' behavior and causing $20,000 worth of damage to his Hollywood Hills, California, property. It comes a year after Driver won a major court victory in the pair's years-long legal battle over their properties

In contention: The driveway which the case revolved around is between their two homes and also shared with two other neighbors who are also suing Perelmutter

Driver's home sits at top of a long driveway and the property under construction is at the bottom. She claimed the wall, put up three when Perelmutter began work on the new house, encroached on it, launching a years-long feud between the neighbors

In January 2017, Perelmutter, was fined, threatened with jail, ordered to pay Driver's $200,000 legal fees and forced to knock down and rebuild a wall dividing his property from the Goodwill Hunting star's home after he was found guilty of contempt of a court order.

But Perelmutter vowed revenge and now he's counter-suing 48-year-old Driver seeking damages from her, saying she trespassed on and damaged his property, engaged in a 'campaign of harassment' against him in protest against a house he was building next door, and 'intentionally inflicted emotional distress' on him.

Last Friday Driver chalked up a small win in LA Superior Court when Perelmutter's wife of 50 years, Mary Lou, 70, dropped her own similar claims against the actress.

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But Perelmutter is not backing down. 

Instead, he's relentlessly pursuing his lawsuit and wants it to go to trial where a jury will decide if he deserves financial damages from Driver for - as he put it to DailyMail.com - making his life a 'living hell'. 

When Driver first bought her three-bedroom home on Woodrow Wilson Drive - for just under $2.5million - in September 2014, relations between her and next door neighbor Perelmutter were 'cordial', he says in court documents.

He even said yes when she asked if she could install a gate across their shared driveway 'to keep out the paparazzi'. 

Disputed: Perelmutter was found guilty of contempt in November 2016 for reducing the width of the driveway from 20 to 14 feet in order to make room to build a wall around his new house

Perelmutter was found guilty of contempt in November 2016 for reducing the width of the driveway from 20 to 14 feet in order to make room to build a wall around his new house

Who's going to pay for the wall? Perelmutter's decision to build underlies the three-week long jury trial which has now been averted

At a sentencing hearing two months later, Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Mark Borenstein ordered Perelmutter to move the offending wall - or go to jail

But 'trouble began almost immediately' in December 2014 when he started building an ultra-modern home on his property bordering that shared driveway.

According to the new court papers filed by Perelmutter's lawyer, Brandon Fernald: 'Driver and her assistant, Ginny Rankin, took it upon themselves to hurl bricks onto (Perelmutter's) property, causing upwards of $20,000 in damages.

'Driver began attempting to block access to (Perelmutter's) property, first using her vehicle and then attempting to prevent Perelmutter and his workers from opening the gate across the shared driveway.

'In addition to these active efforts to delay and obstruct construction, Perelmutter and his construction workers were treated to daily barrages by Ms. Driver, screaming all manner of obscenities and racial epithets, threatening some with deportation, speeding by/at them with her vehicle etc..

'Driver's continual harassment during the course of the construction took an emotional and physical toll on Perelmutter…..who, with his wife Mary Lou, had sunk their savings into building what they hoped would be the home they would live in for the remainder of their lives.

'Home construction is difficult enough without adding daily harassment and obstruction. Driver's constant harassment and obstruction of Perelmutter and his workers served to transform the project into a daily nightmare that Perelmutter could not escape.'

In the new court documents filed earlier this month, attorney Fernald argues: 'There can be no doubt that Driver's efforts to block (access to Perelmutter's property), scare off workers and generally make Perelmutter's and his workers' lives miserable on a daily basis served to delay and obstruct construction of the home.

Perelmutter claimed that Driver trespassed on and damaged his property, engaged in a 'campaign of harassment' against him in protest against a house he was building next door, and 'intentionally inflicted emotional distress' on him

Perelmutter claims that Driver trespassed on and damaged his property, engaged in a 'campaign of harassment' against him in protest against a house he was building next door, and 'intentionally inflicted emotional distress' on him

At one point during the years-long feud, Perelmutter accused Driver of vandalizing the wall by throwing baby food jars filled with black paint at it

At one point during the years-long feud, Perelmutter accused Driver of vandalizing the wall by throwing baby food jars filled with black paint at it

'While Perelmutter has been unable to tie the delay to dollars and cents harm, he is nonetheless entitled to seek damage for the emotional distress caused by Driver's course of wrongful conduct.

'There can be no doubt that Driver's conduct was intentional and arose to the level of extreme and outrageous behavior. 

'Over the course of an 18-month construction project , Driver hurled insults at Perelmutter and his workers, threw bricks and other materials on to Perelmutter's property, blocked access to the property, sped at Perelmutter with her vehicle, and made obscene gestures.'

Fernald declares that, 'Driver was out to harm Perelmutter in any way that she could….If such leaves any doubt as to Driver's intent and malice, the video of Driver gloating over her victory in the contempt case and expressing joy at the prospect of Perelmutter being 'f**ked' and potentially losing his properties, served to eliminate any further doubt.'

'Driver's actions were deliberate and taken with malice. A jury should decide whether such gives rise to punitive damages and if so, how much.'

In court documents filed February 16, Driver's lawyers object to all of Perelmutter's claims - including that the British-born star blocked access to and threw bricks on his property, drove at and hurled obscenities at him and his workers and threatened them with deportation.

Driver shares the Hollywood Hills home with her art writer boyfriend Neville Wakefield. They're pictured together in April 2016

Driver shares the Hollywood Hills home with her art writer boyfriend Neville Wakefield. They're pictured together in April 2016

Branding Perelmutter's accusations 'vague and ambiguous', Driver's lawyers say: 'Mr. Perelmutter's testimony fails to show personal knowledge….instead relying on impermissible hearsay statements of construction workers and/or other individuals for knowledge of Ms. Driver's alleged behavior.

'Mr. Perelmutter has not provided any factual basis that he witnessed these alleged events personally.'

In response to Perelmutter's claim that he caught Driver on video 'gloating' over her victory in the contempt trial last year, her attorneys also dismiss this as 'impermissible hearsay, insofar as Mr. Perelmutter is relying on a video that was never produced during discovery. The video was never authenticated during discovery.'

Driver's lawyers also contend that Perelmutter has 'failed to produce medical evidence of emotional distress'.

And as for Perelmutter's charge that Driver's 'daily barrages and obstructionist and harassing tactic took a toll on the construction' of his new house, they add: 'Mr Perelmutter has not laid the proper foundation that he had any knowledge of any 'losses' from Ms. Driver's conduct.'

The long running court battles between Driver and Perelmutter began when Driver - accusing him of, among many other things, frightening her and her son, Henry, now nine - took out a restraining order against him in 2015.

To avoid ending up behind bars, Perelmutter reluctantly knocked down the wall and rebuilt it six feet closer to his house, widening the driveway he shares with Driver, 47, back to it's original 20 feet

To avoid ending up behind bars, Perelmutter reluctantly knocked down the wall and rebuilt it six feet closer to his house, widening the driveway he shares with Driver, 47, back to it's original 20 feet

When that failed to end the feud, Driver went to Los Angeles Superior Court again in November 2016. 

And this time she won. Perelmutter was found guilty of contempt for reducing the width of the driveway from 20 to 14 feet in order to make room to build a wall around his new house.

At a sentencing hearing two months later, Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Mark Borenstein ordered Perelmutter to move the offending wall - or go to jail. 

And he was also fined $1,000, ordered to do ten hours of community service and pay Driver's $200,000-plus attorney fees.

To avoid ending up behind bars, Perelmutter reluctantly knocked down the wall and rebuilt it six feet closer to his house, widening the driveway he shares with Driver, 47, back to it's original 20 feet.

But even at his January 2017 sentencing hearing Perelmutter - who walks around with a crooked driftwood cane - continued to lash out at Driver, saying that she 'perjured herself in every way with her testimony of complete lies,' putting on a 'performance worthy of an Oscar winner.'

After losing the battle of the wall, Perelmutter filed his current countersuit against Driver, telling DailyMail.com: 'I'm going to pursue that lawsuit against her as hard as I can. She's destroyed my property, she's harassed me, she's trespassed - she's made my life a living hell.'

He's sticking to that vow and hopes a jury will side with him when the case goes to trial on April 9. 

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