Paris Jackson has asked a Los Angeles court to move $600 million US out of her father's estate and into the family trust, saying the trust has never been funded in the more than 17 years since his death.
The petition was filed on 29 October in a state court in Los Angeles. It asks a judge to order the transfer for Paris Jackson and her two brothers, Prince and Bigi.
A long-running family argument about money has become a public test of how Michael Jackson's estate is run. In its view, litigation with the Internal Revenue Service prevents any funding. Paris Jackson says the executor has had the ability and the duty to pay out for years.
Michael Jackson’s family trust remains unfunded
Her filing says the trust has sat empty despite the size of the estate and the revenue its business deals have produced.
A trust that has never been funded
In court documents, Paris Jackson accused John Branca, the estate's sole executor, of retaliating financially against her and her siblings after she questioned his handling of the estate, saying their payments fell by millions while he kept control of their inheritance.
Executor continues to keep each beneficiary beholden to him with an iron grip over when and if monies are distributed to them.
She also accused the executors of meeting her earlier legal challenges with “scorched earth litigation, public attacks, and a multimillion reduction” in the money paid to her and her siblings.
Her petition says her father wanted each child to start drawing income from their share at 21, though it does not say how much. Further distributions would follow at 30 and again at 40.
The estate reads the will differently. Its spokesperson said no distribution is made until Jackson's children are in their 30s.
Michael Jackson’s will is clear. None of his children receive a distribution until they are in their 30s.
More than $200 million US has already been distributed for the benefit of Paris Jackson and the other beneficiaries, the estate said. It denied withholding or reducing payments at all, calling the accusation “a complete fabrication”.
What the estate says stands in the way
A representative for the estate said Paris Jackson's legal team is “well aware” that several legal hurdles must be cleared before the trusts can be filled.
The estate's largest dispute is a tax case in which the Internal Revenue Service claimed $700 million US in taxes and penalties. The estate said it obtained a ruling that sharply reduced that sum, but the matter is unsettled and the figure could still move.
The estate was able to secure a ruling to significantly reduce that amount, but the matter has not been settled and could still change
The dispute's timeline is also contested: the estate says it remains open, while Paris Jackson says the case appears to be at or near its end.
The figures at the centre of the fight
Her petition says the estate had roughly $850 million US in cash and cash equivalents at the close of 2024, with roughly $600 million potentially available once likely liabilities are considered. The executors have put the estate's total worth at $2 billion to $3 billion.
| Item | Amount | Account given in |
|---|---|---|
| Cash and equivalents at end-2024 | $850 million | Paris Jackson's petition |
| Sum the petition seeks | $600 million | Paris Jackson's petition |
| Total value of the estate | $2 billion to $3 billion | Executors, as cited in the petition |
| Already distributed to beneficiaries | more than $200 million | The estate |
| IRS claim as first pursued | $700 million | The estate |
Paris Jackson said executors announced in 2011 that they would ask a court to begin funding the trust, but no such petition has been filed.
The petition cites estate transactions that generated cash of more than $1 billion US, before taxes and expenses.
A spokesperson for Paris Jackson rejected the estate's account.
The Estate is once again deflecting from its own incompetence. Paris called for the trust to be partially funded, something [executor John Branca] had the ability and obligation to do long ago. After years of delay, Paris had no choice but to step in herself.
A fees fight, late accountings and a catalogue
A separate motion accuses Branca of missing a court-ordered deadline for full accountings of 2023 and 2024. The estate said the accountings have been filed, but her lawyers argue they are deficient.
She further accused him of using estate money for personal travel on private jets, putting personal costs on the estate and hiding that spending from beneficiaries. The petition says Branca acknowledged several personal trips and repaid some costs only after she investigated; her lawyers described the conduct as “outright theft” and a breach of his duties.
The estate said Branca and co-executor John McClain waived executor pay and instead took a management fee set by the court for running Jackson's business.
A court appointed Branca and McClain coexecutors in 2009. McClain died in May, and Branca is now sole executor.
- 25 Jun 2009Michael Jackson dies
He was 50. The coroner ruled the death a homicide caused by acute propofol intoxication, with sedatives a contributing factor.
- 2009Executors appointed
A court names John Branca and John McClain co-executors of the estate.
- 2011Funding promised
Executors say they will petition to start funding the trust. Paris Jackson says no such petition has been filed.
- 22 Mar 2024Bigi's motion
Bigi Jackson moves to stop his grandmother Katherine from using estate funds for a legal fight.
- 22 Aug 2024Sony sale cleared
An appeals court allows the sale of a 50% stake in Jackson's songs to Sony for about $600 million.
- 29 OctPetition filed
Paris Jackson asks a Los Angeles court to move $600 million into the family trust.
- 4 DecHearing scheduled
A judge is due to hear the trust-funding petition and the challenge to the management fee.
Jackson died at 50 on 25 June 2009, following a cardiac arrest at his Los Angeles residence. The coroner ruled the death a homicide caused by acute propofol intoxication, with the effects of sedatives a contributing factor.
After a Los Angeles appeals court cleared the way on 22 August 2024, the estate sold Sony Music Group a 50% stake in Jackson's songs for about $600 million, over Katherine Jackson's objections. It still holds a significant stake in the catalogue. Sony acquired the publishing rights to the Beatles' music, which Jackson bought in 1985, in 2016; the estate also has control of properties including the Broadway production MJ the Musical and took part in the recent biopic Michael.
Earlier family litigation put some of the estate's outflows on the record. Bigi filed a motion on 22 March 2024 to stop his grandmother from using estate funds for a legal dispute, believed to concern the catalogue deal, showing that Katherine Jackson had received more than $55 million since her son's death. That included more than $33 million in cash from an allowance of $166,000 a month and $15 million to buy and improve her home.
Paris Jackson filed alone. Prince, 29, and Bigi, 24, are beneficiaries of the estate but are not named on the petition, and it was not clear from the filing why.
Its representatives said they want the trusts fully funded once the disputes end, as they say Michael Jackson intended.
Fifteen years later, Michael’s beneficiaries are still waiting.
The Los Angeles Times said the next hearing in the case is scheduled for Wednesday.
On 4 December, a Los Angeles judge is scheduled to hear Paris Jackson's petition to fund the trust and her objection to the management fee.
