Yes, You Can Follow Michael Jackson's Estate!

If you are interested, you can follow developments in the Estate of Michael Jackson.  It only takes a few minutes of searching to locate the public website for viewing the court dockets for estates being probated in the Los Angeles County Superior Court. So if you're interested in keeping up to date on what's going on with the probate of Michael Jackson's will and estate, then follow the links and instructions provided below.

Even if you are not interested, the fact that you can follow the developments in probate court is instructive; it speaks volumes to the level of privacy one can expect in probate cases.  It also serves to illustrate what can be accomplished with trust planning.  You will note that Michael Jackson's estate plan included a revocable trust.  Although the probate court will involve numerous issues, such as guardianship of the children, if Michael Jackson;s trust was completely funded, identification and valuation of assets, and court overseen administration of them, would be limited. 

How to View the Court Docket for Michael Jackson's Estate:

Strange Suit Against Michael Jackson's Estate

After reading that a taxpayer had sued the Michael Jackson estate to recover money spent for his memorial, I suspected that there would be other cases.  Of course, a quick google search revealed an interesting case, reported by TMZ.   TMZ reported last week that "[a] woman who claims to have spent 2,000 hours analyzing the extended family of Michael Jackson -- including children, birth mother(s), sperm donor claims ... and on and on ... wants more than $2 million from Michael Jackson's estate." 


According to TMZ, "Claire McMillan says she's a 'homeschool expert' who did 'a thorough analysis' of Jackson's complete extended family, to determine ... well, it's not clear why she was doing it.  Whatever ... she concluded that Katherine Jackson is doing 'a poor job outside of the home, related to - grooming, age, and psyc (sic) appropriate activities, same-sex, academic & soc interactions w/ non-extended family children .... ' oh, what's the use? It makes no sense." 

TMZ reports that McMillan claims she also inquired as to whether Dr. Arnold Klein would be interested in obtaining guardianship of the children with McMillan and her husband.  McMillan claims that her time is worth $1,000 an hour, and she wants $2,002,000 for her efforts.  Wow!

Howard Weitzman, lawyer for the Michael Jackson estate, reportedly told TMZ that, "[t]o the best of our knowledge, Ms. McMillan never did anything for the estate and the estate owes her nothing."  TMZ goes so far as to characterize the suit as a "Crazy Creditor's Claim."  No clarification if TMZ is saying the claim is crazy, the creditor is crazy, or both.

You can read more here.

Michael Jackson's Estate Sued Over Memorial

The Michael Jackson memorial in Los Angeles last July reportedly cost the cash-strapped city millions of dollars in police overtime and sanitation expenses, and now one  resident wants  Michael Jackson's family to pay the bill. According to the Associated Press, Jose F. Vallejo is seeking $3.3 million from Jackson’s estate.  The lawsuit, typically called a taxpayer's suit, is brought under a California law which permits taxpayers to sue in order to recover money on behalf of a governmental entity to which the taxpayer pays taxes. The taxpayer has requested that the money be deposited into the treasury for the City of Los Angeles.  Although the taxpayer typically does not benefit directly from the action, there are typically attorney fees which may have to be paid either by the defendant or the City, depending upon the outcome of the case.  The taxpayer benefits, at least theoretically, indirectly by reduced need for taxation.

Ohio, too, has a statute which permits taxpayer suits in certain cases. 

While the memorial cost the city millions, it also reportedly earned $4 million for the city’s hotels, restaurants