Michael Jackson’s three kids and mom will not be receiving any financial distributions from his trust until his estate settles an ongoing dispute with the IRS.
Prince, 27, Paris, 26, and Bigi Jackson, 22, are beneficiaries of the late Billie Jean hitmaker’s trust, while his mother Katherine, 94, is a sole beneficiary of a sub trust in his will.
But the King of Pop’s children, as well as Katherine, have been cut off from getting any money from the trust until the tax dispute is settled, as per court documents obtained by People, and filed on May 28.
The dispute began following an IRS audit of the estate’s federal tax return. The estate was then ‘issued a note of deficiency’ alleging it ‘undervalued its assets’ and owed ‘$700 million in taxes and penalties.’
The estate disputed those findings and won a trial in tax court in 2021. However, they have since filed a motion for reconsideration in regards to the court’s value of Jackson’s music catalog, known as Mijac (owned by Sony music), which is still pending.
Because the request is still pending, the value of the estate has not yet been finalized for tax purposes.
After the value will be determined, the estate and IRS will have to agree on the value of the deduction, before a final judgement can be made.
Amid the ongoing dispute, attorneys requested that a portion of Michael’s estate be distributed to the family trust.
But the request was denied as executors argued they can’t ‘possibly determine what amount could be safely distributed at this time.’
The executors suggested the estate could provide for Michael’s children and mother through the ‘family allowance.’
Prince, born in 1997, is Jackson’s first child with ex-wife Debbie Rowe, 65. His godparents are Macaulay Culkin and Elizabeth Taylor.
The two then welcomed daughter Paris in 1998.
Jackson and Rowe divorced in 1999 and he was given full custody of the kids.
Bigi was born via surrogate in 2002 as Prince Michael Jackson II. The identity of the biological mother has not been publicly revealed.
The recent filing comes months after Sony Music Group finalized a deal to purchase half of Michael’s music catalog for at least $600 million.
It also comes amid Bigi’s – also known as Blanket – ongoing dispute with his grandmother.
In March, Bigi filed legal papers seeking to block Katherine from using estate funds amid an extended legal battle with the estate executors.
It’s the latest chapter in a legal battle over the Beat It singer’s estate nearly 15 years after his June 25, 2009 death at the age of 50, from an overdose of the surgical anesthetic drug Propofol.
While the legal docs TMZ reviewed did not identify the specific issue on hand, recent headlines have indicated that the Man in the Mirror singer’s survivors opposed efforts made by his estate executors to sell a large portion of the late artist’s catalogue.
Bigi and his grandmother were on the same page in stating their resistance to a potential sale, but Bigi was not involved with Katherine’s subsequent appeal of the court’s eventual ruling to let the executors proceed in exploring further options for a sale.
Attorneys for Bigi told the court that he feels the appeal will not be a successful one and doesn’t want to depreciate the value of the estate with expensive legal bills, the outlet reported.
Bigi’s legal team requested the court ‘use its best judgment’ in ruling for Katherine to be reimbursed for ‘reasonable attorney’s fees’ she racked prior to appealing the court’s ruling.
Attorneys for Bigi said in docs submit to the court last June that Bigi had hoped to keep his position on the matter under wraps, encouraging the court to maintain confidentiality on certain aspects of the legal conflict.
Bigi ‘is a very private person and may have said nothing if he knew that his words or positions could become public,’ his lawyers said.
‘That, in turn, would have denied the trial court of the ability to hear and consider all aspects of the proposed action.’
In legal docs obtained by Dailymail.com, the two executors of the estate, John Branca and John McClain, filed paperwork in Los Angeles Superior Court asking it to stop Katherine in her pursuit of $561,548 from them over a legal dispute tied to the late Thriller singer’s catalog.
Katherine filed court documents requesting the six-figure sum in a motion, as she said she spent the total on legal fees seeking to prevent Branca and McClain from selling her late son’s work.
Last month the estate announced a partial sale, as Sony purchased the rights to half of Jackson’s material for $600 million amid Katherine’s objections.
Michael’s eldest son Prince said through his legal team that he preferred to keep his position on the situation private.
Lawyers for Prince described him last June in court docs as ‘a private figure who never sought or invited attention as to this specific proposed transaction or, more broadly, the details of his position as far as this transaction is concerned.’
They added that ‘whether an individual beneficiary is supportive, opposed, or indifferent to this transaction is information that, if publicly disclosed, would likely have a negative impact on the ability to consummate this transaction or negotiate/renegotiate a different transaction in the future.’
Michael’s daughter Paris said through her legal team last June that she, as well, sought to ‘keep confidential her position in this matter’ citing ‘a variety of intrapersonal family reasons.’
