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The legal saga surrounding the estate of the legendary King of Pop, Michael Jackson, has taken another dramatic turn as Katherine Jackson, the matriarch of the Jackson family, fires back at her grandson, Bigi Jackson, amidst dispute.
Just days after Bigi, formerly known as Blanket, raised objections in a court filing to his grandmother’s use of funds from Michael Jackson’s estate to cover her legal fees in a dispute with the estate’s executors over the sale of the singer’s catalog to Sony, Katherine Jackson has filed a blunt response.
© GettyImagesIn a filing dated March 20th, Katherine Jackson alleges that the estate’s executors are too conservative with managing the estate’s finances, claiming they have enough resources to cover the expenses she is requesting, as shown in documents obtained by PEOPLE.
According to the filing, Katherine Jackson contends, “it seems clear to [Katherine] that the Executors are holding all of the assets in the Estate in order to keep control over them, and to avoid the more liberal distribution requirements of the Trust.”
Katherine Jackson’s main argument is that the estate has ample resources to cover the costs of her legal fees. She believes that the estate’s current value, estimated at $1.5 billion, is more than enough to justify the allocation of funds for her legal expenses. However, she feels that the executors are unwilling to provide the necessary financial support, which she believes is unwarranted.
Attorneys representing Katherine Jackson argue that covering her legal fees would not detriment creditors or the estate itself. They emphasize that the estate’s assets far exceed potential liabilities, leaving ample resources for its beneficiaries.
© GettyImagesIn addition, the filing disputes the claims made by the executors‘ attorneys during a hearing held on March 8th regarding charitable donations. The estate attorneys argued that 20 percent of the estate is intended for philanthropic causes. Still, Katherine Jackson’s legal team asserts that such payments are not required before distributing the estate to other beneficiaries.
It’s worth noting that Katherine Jackson is not a direct beneficiary of Michael Jackson’s estate, unlike the singer’s children. Instead, as informed by the publication, she is the sole beneficiary of a sub-trust established in Michael Jackson’s will.
© GettyImagesThe legal wrangling over Michael Jackson’s estate has been a hot topic since the pop icon’s untimely death in 2009. With billions of dollars at stake, tensions remain high among family members, beneficiaries, and estate executors as each party vies for control and financial gain.
Bigi is taking a stand against the financial burden of his grandmother’s legal pursuits
Bigi’s legal representatives presented a compelling argument highlighting that Katherine’s appeal has slim chances of success. Therefore, they believe it would be imprudent to allocate resources to it, especially when the beneficiaries have chosen to refrain from participating in the appeal process.
As a result, Bigi is taking a stand against bearing the financial burden of his grandmother’s legal pursuits. “It is readily apparent that a reversal on appeal would be an extreme longshot,” wrote lawyers on behalf of Bigi, as informed by the publication. “Given those odds, Bigi decided not to waste his resources to participate in an appeal. Nonetheless, Katherine has decided to appeal this court’s ruling. That decision is not for the benefit of the heirs.”
