From the category archives:

Probate Court

Michigan Bar Journal Review of Trial & Heirs

June 8, 2010

The State Bar of Michigan’s montly journal has recently reviewed our book, Trial & Heirs:  Famous Fortune Fights!.  Here are some of the highlights:

After reading Trial & Heirs, I am convinced that I need an estate plan. It’s time to get serious about, you know, death.  Danielle and Andrew Mayoras, Michigan estate-planning attorneys who are married [...]

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Will there be a fight over Gary Coleman’s estate?

June 6, 2010

Gary Coleman died just over a week ago, on May 28, 2010.  And in that week, there have already been enough surprises to spark a whole series of “Whatcha talkin ’bout Willis!”’s. 
First came the question of how Gary Coleman died at the age of 42.  According to the 911 tapes, Shannon Price (who called herself his wife) summoned emergency personnel [...]

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Dennis Hopper’s wife to continue fight into probate court

May 30, 2010

The recent legal battles between the ailing Dennis Hopper and his wife in divorce court have been well-documented.  Here are the Probate Lawyer Blog’s articles covering the case, including the Top Ten most hurtful allegations lobbed back and forth (a serious must-read!). 
Now that Hopper has passed on due to his prostate cancer, on May 29th, at age [...]

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Michael Jackson executors sorting through requests for money

January 24, 2010

It’s been seven months since the King of Pop died suddenly at the age of 50, and fights surrounding his estate seem like they may last for many years to come. Creditors are coming out of the woodwork, with new ones surfacing on a weekly basis. The latest, a management company, joins a [...]

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New Michael Jackson Estate Deal Reported

November 28, 2009

A couple weeks ago, I wrote how Katherine Jackson had a surprising “change of heart” by dropping her challenge to the executors for Michael’s estate.  In fact, her husband Joe Jackson was shocked — his lawyer called the move “despicable”. 
Well, if this exclusive report from the United Kingdom website News of the World is accurate, we [...]

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Farrah Fawcett’s Trust Provides A Good Lesson

November 19, 2009

It’s been widely reported across various websites in the last couple days that Farrah Fawcett’s will has been revealed and it “shockingly” disinherited her longtime ex-boyfriend Ryan O’Neal (father to her son, Redmond).  These reports are wrong on several levels.

First, the document was her Trust, not her will.  You can read it here, courtesy of [...]

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Katherine Jackson’s Shocking Change Of Heart

November 12, 2009

The Michael Jackson Estate has been the subject of regular court hearings as Katherine Jackson battled for control over the last several months.  She routinely objected to the decisions of the co-executors John Branca and John McClain.  Recently, she hired a new attorney with the promise of taking the case in a new direction, as I [...]

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Leona Helmsley Charity Battle Rages On

November 10, 2009

As I described in this article from February 2009, the trustees of the Leona Helmsley charitable trust asked the probate court in New York for permission to donate primarily to charities that helped people rather than dogs, despite some language in the trust that suggested she wanted her billions to benefits animal charities. 
Specifically, the trust had [...]

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Ike Turner Will Contest Ruling Is In

November 2, 2009

The trial involving whether Rock ‘n Roll pioneer & legend, Ike Turner, left a valid will has ended.  As described in this prior article I wrote, the case pitted his six children (two of whom apparently are now questionable children of his) versus his ex-wife versus his friend and “sometime” attorney.  I’m not exactly sure why [...]

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Family fight over control of Michael Crichton’s trust

October 20, 2009

Celebrity estate battles just keep coming.  Here’s the UPI article about the latest in a long line of court cases involving dueling heirs of the rich and famous.  Best selling author Michael Crichton (writer of ER and Jurassic Park) left behind a messy estate and trust because he failed to update his estate planning documents to [...]

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