The two men running Michael Jackson’s estate submitted a $106,000 legal bill as part of their legal battle with Paris Jackson, Luxury Handbag Shopping can exclusively report.
On Friday, January 9, John Branca and John McClain —the executors of Michael’s estate since the pop star died in 2009 — filed court docs stating the six-figure amount they incurred fighting Paris in court.
The executors stated that racked up $94,000 for past legal bills, and an additional $21,000 for future legal fees.
The move comes after a judge denied Paris’ attempt to block the executors from making certain payments. Paris’ rep called the decision a “minor procedural issue” that had no “bearing on the substance of the case.”
Paris’ rep told Us, “For months, Paris Jackson has worked to address what appear to be troubling discrepancies and financial irregularities in the administration of her father’s estate. It’s no surprise the executors and their lawyers are using every tool at their disposal to take even more money from the Jackson family and use it to line their own pockets. Paris remains undeterred and will continue fighting for transparency, accountability and fairness for her family.”
Paris’ rep previously told Us that when the executors filed their request for attorney fees, “we will oppose it.”
In regard to the judge denying Paris’ motion, her rep told Us at the time, “This order is limited to minor procedural issues and does not change the facts: the pattern of behavior displayed by the executors and their attorneys raises significant red flags, and Paris will continue working to ensure her family is treated fairly. We will be submitting an updated filing shortly.”
As Us first reported, last summer, Paris first raised questions about certain payments that Branca and McClain spent on third-party law firms in 2018. She told the court she was frustrated with delays in the accounting reports being submitted. (The estate claimed Paris and her siblings agreed to the setup years ago.)
Paris claimed that the estate had asked for certain amounts for each law firm, only to change the amounts requested various times. She also claimed to be concerned about Branca and McClain paying the law firm’s “so-called ‘premium payments’ for unrecorded attorney time.”
“During this one six-month period alone in 2018, Executors request that the Court approve $625,000 in payments to three law firms for what they say is uncaptured time, without explanation as to why counsel was incapable of recording unbilled time, or why such a failure should not preclude payment,” Paris’ lawyer wrote. “Even worse, these payments appear, at least in part, to consist of lavish gratuities bestowed upon already well-compensated counsel.”
“As painful as it is to say in print, the present records suggest a group of closely-knit, highly-compensated lawyers is exploiting Executors’ lack of oversight to skim money from the Estate, in plain view,” Paris’ lawyer added.
Paris said she discovered “several inconsistencies that demand close scrutiny of all fees and costs sought in the petition.”
The estate denied all of Paris’ claims. Lawyers for Branca and McClain argued all payments made to third-party law firms were proper and the amounts were standard for the entertainment industry.
The executors pointed out that Paris had received roughly $65 million in benefits from the estate since her father died.
The “argument that the payment of about $600,000 in bonuses (that would be returned if not approved) in a year where the Estate earned almost $300 million would justify dramatically impeding the Executors’ ability to operate the Estate’s businesses is hardly worth responding to further,” the executors argued.
In a separate filing, Paris’ lawyer called out the executors’ behavior. “That conduct, born of comfort and arrogance, is indefensible, and Executors have done nothing to indicate otherwise. Instead, like the Wizard of Oz, they demand that the Court trust them blindly, refusing to let anyone look behind the curtain.”
Michael died in 2009 at the age of 50.
