In a recent legal dispute, Katherine, the mother of the late Michael Jackson, insisted on receiving full payment of her substantial legal expenses, even as her grandson Bigi, most popularly known as Blanket, and the estate executors raised objections.
Court documents acquired by Radar Online detail her claim based on the estate's reported availability of over $1 billion.
The 93-year-old pressed the court to approve her request for reimbursement totaling $561,548 in legal fees.
Jackson vs. Jackson
In a battle against the executors, John Branca and John McClain, Katherine accumulated significant fees contesting the recent $600 million sale of half of Michael Jackson's music catalog.
Her efforts to prevent the deal's completion lasted for months. Katherine shared in court that her son expressed the desire to retain the catalog as a safeguard for his family.
Blanket and Paris, Michael's youngest and middle child, rallied behind their grandmother in her legal battle. Prince, the eldest sibling, stood in favor of the agreement proposed by the executors.
Despite Katherine's vocal disapproval, the court ultimately approved the deal. Not wasting any time, she promptly appealed.
But Katherine also achieved several minor triumphs in her case. Despite these wins, the outcome of the dispute remains undecided. In light of her victories, she demanded that the estate cover $561k in fees linked to the case.
The estate dismissed her request without consideration.
According to the argument, "The Petition does not indicate the source from which Mrs. Jackson's counsel seeks to have the requested attorney's fees and expenses paid. It is not clear whether she is seeking payment from the probate estate or from the Trust."
"To the extent Mrs. Jackson seeks payment from the probate estate, the Petition lacks merit because it relies on provisions of the Trust, claiming that payment of legal fees is required by provisions of the Trust authorizing the Trustees to make payments in [they're] absolute discretion, for [Mrs. Jackson's] care, support, maintenance, comfort, and well-being,"
Katherine Jackson demands reimbursement for legal fees from Michael Jackson's estate amid ongoing dispute over $1.5 billion assets.
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Blanket Jackson Fights His Grandmother
In his response, Blanket Jackson presented his counterargument.
He contended that Katherine deserved repayment for the expenses incurred while contesting the auction sale, limited to the fees accrued before the appeal process.
Blanket explicitly mentioned that although he did not support Katherine's decision to appeal, he stood by her in the initial legal battle. It is worth noting that Blanket did not pursue an appeal against the court's decision.
The Court's decision to grant the Petition for Instructions was clearly within its discretionary powers. As per his legal team's advice, the likelihood of a successful appeal was low, leading [Blanket] to decide against pursuing further legal action to avoid additional expenses.
Per the motion, "Despite the expense and long odds, Katherine decided to pursue an appeal."
"[Blanket] prays that this Court deny Katherine's fees and costs incurred to appeal. It would be unfair to make those beneficiaries shoulder this burden when they expressly decided an appeal would not be in their best interests."
Katherine recently submitted a motion asserting that the opposition specified where the requested payment should originate.
Her contrary to the executors' arguments elaborated, stating, "It seems clear to her 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 contended that the estate currently holds an estimated $1.5 billion, surpassing its potential liabilities by a considerable margin.
As a result, hundreds of millions of dollars are accessible for the remaining beneficiaries, ensuring a significant sum for distribution.
She said the executors "in good faith contend that the Estate does not have sufficient funds to allow the Trust to make the request payment."
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