LOS ANGELES — The battle for Michael Jackson’s estate is heating up after the discovery of a will drafted in 2002 by the late music icon.
In the document, Jackson outlined that his possessions be divided up between: his mother, Katherine; his three children, Prince Michael, 12, Paris, 11, and Prince Michael II (also known as Blanket), 7; and one or more charities. Notably missing from the will is Jackson’s father, Joe, who the singer often publicly chastised for physically abusing him as a child.
In a court filing Monday, Jackson’s parents said they were unaware of any wills designated by their son, who died last Thursday from an apparent cardiac arrest.
“No will has been presented to family or us,” said Jackson family attorney L. Londell McMillan in an email to the Wall Street Journal. “We will review any will when we see it.”
According to the paper, Jackson’s 2002 will names attorney John Branca and music executive John McClain as executors of his estate. Branca served as Jackson’s primary attorney from 1980 to 2006 and was rehired shortly before the King of Pop died.
Both Branca and McClain have yet to comment on the will.
Jackson is believed to have died with approximately $500 million in debt, but the value of his assets likely surpass that by $200 million or more, sources told the paper. His 50% stake in Sony/ATV Music Publishing, a company estimated to be worth $2 billion, is widely considered as his most valuable asset.
It is believed that Jackson’s 2002 will could be submitted to the court as early as Thursday.
