This year marks 15 years without the King of Pop, and even after all this time, his family still canโt get it together. Michael Jacksonโs mother, Katherine Jackson, has been fighting against her sonโs estate controllers after they โsecretlyโ sold half of the late singerโs music catalog worth $600 million to Sony Music Group back in February, according to BillBoard.
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In a recent appeal, Katherineโs lawyers first argued the estate should be held in contempt for closing the Sony deal while her initial objection was still being disputed. Fast forward, Katherine, who is listed as a lifetime beneficiary to her sonโs estate, says the deal allegedly violates the terms of Michaelโs will.
In full, Katherine lawyers claimed โthe estate did not need the cash generated by the sale, the sale violated Michaelโs wishes as communicated to various members of his family, and the executors took no steps to confirm that the sale price was at or above fair market value.โ
Itโs clear Katherine and Michaelโs estate have had serious beef, and although she was hoping to gain some kind of victory over estate co-executors, Attorney John Branca and A&R executive John McClain, the panel ruled the case a โBlack or Whiteโ matter. In agreement with Michaelโs estate, the judges wrote โKatherineโs challenge fails on the merits because the probate courtโs order does not violate the terms of Michaelโs will,โ according to the tentative obtained by The Rolling Stone.
Michaelโs will told the executors to โsell off as little of the estate as possible after paying legitimate estate debts,โ which doesnโt specify exact limitations according to the judges. With the willโs ambiguous language, that leaves Branca and McClain in control and Katherine โSpeechless.โ
The appellate panelโs opinion is expected to take effect over the next 90 days. One of Katherineโs lawyers was set to speak regarding the appeal but waved his appearance shortly after the judges announced the tentative.
Legal battles between Michaelโs estate and his family will likely continue citing the ongoing probate court case. Until the probate closes, the heirs to Michaelโs estate: his mother and three children, Bigi (formally known as Blanket), Prince, and Paris will simply have to wait.
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