Michael Jackson’s mother and his three children have been cut off from receiving funds from his trust due to an ongoing dispute between his estate and the IRS (Internal Revenue Service).
As per his will, the hitmaker’s three children, Prince, 27, Paris, 26, and Bigi Jackson, 22, became beneficiaries of his trust after his death in 2009, while his mother, Katherine, 94, became the sole beneficiary of a sub-trust.
However, their trusts currently cannot be funded until the longstanding tax dispute with the IRS is settled, according to court documents obtained by multiple outlets. The family members, nevertheless, are still receiving payments through an allowance, the estate said.
The trusts of Michael Jackson’s mother and his three kids cannot be funded until an ongoing dispute between his estate and the IRS is resolved
The King of Pop’s estate has been locked in a legal battle with the IRS since 2021, with the latter accusing the estate of undervaluing its assets and owing “$700 million in taxes and penalties.”
The estate challenged the assessment and won but later filed a motion asking for the value of the singer’s music catalog called Mijac, owned by Sony Music, to be reconsidered. Since that still remains pending, the estate’s value for tax purposes still remains undetermined.
Further proceedings can only take place after the determination of the estate’s value.
The trust “requires that 20 percent of the estate ‘as valued for federal estate tax purposes’ be distributed to charity before the remaining assets of the estate can be distributed to sub-trusts,” according to a May 28 filing obtained by ET.
It is “necessary” to resolve the dispute to determine the charitable contribution, the filing said.
The hitmaker’s three children, Prince, 27, Paris, 26, and Bigi Jackson, 22, became beneficiaries of his trust after his death in 2009
Even though the disputes are yet to be resolved, the estate said it still continues to provide for the pop sensation’s children and their grandmother through “the family allowance.”
“In annual reports provided to the probate court, which are publicly available, anyone can see that the Estate provides Michael’s mother and children with very substantial amounts of money to support them,” read a statement to People. “The Estate has a very cooperative relationship with Michael’s children and whenever they need anything, the Estate works with them to ensure that they are very well taken care of, just as Michael would have wanted.”
“Virtually no request of Mrs. Jackson for her care or maintenance has been declined,” the estate also claimed in recent filings.
A source close to the estate told the outlet that Katherine has received more than $55 million since the Thriller vocalist passed away.
The pop icon’s mother, Katherine, is not a beneficiary of the estate like his kids, but she is the sole beneficiary of a sub-trust, as per his will
The May 28 filing comes at the heels of Katherine responding to her grandson Bigi’s objection to her using funds from the pop icon’s estate to pay her legal fees in a separate battle with the executors of the estate. That legal dispute is also ongoing.
“… it seems clear to [Katherine] that the Executors are holding all of the assets in the Estate in order to keep control over them, and to avoid the more liberal distribution requirements of the Trust,” said Katherine’s filing.
“The Executors cannot in good faith contend that the Estate does not have sufficient available funds to allow the Trust to make the requested payment,” said her filing, which also challenged the estate’s 20 percent donation to charities.
“…Nothing in the Trust requires those payments to be made before any preliminary distribution to other beneficiaries,” the filing argued about the charitable donations.
The hitmaker became a father to Prince and Paris, born to Debbie Rowe, before welcoming Bigi via surrogacy
The Billie Jean singer became a father to Prince and Paris after they were born to his second wife, Debbie Rowe, who offered to have his children before their divorce in 1999. The pop icon took full custody of the kids after their separation, and he welcomed Bigi, formerly known as Blanket, via surrogacy in 2002.
“I enjoy taking care of my children myself,” the musician once said in an interview with Geraldo Rivera, as quoted by TODAY. “It’s fun. That’s why I had them, so I could take care of them and it’s just great relief for me.”
He also said at the time that he wanted to be the “best father in the world” to them and added, “They’re wonderful, sweet, innocent children.”
“They’re the world for me. I wake up and I’m ready for the day because of them,” he said.
The three children made a rare public appearance on the red carpet together in March this year, attending an event in honor of their late father’s legacy.
They were seen at the Prince Edward Theatre in London for a preview performance of MJ: The Musical, which is based on the late singer’s life.
“They’re the world for me,” the Thriller singer said as he once gushed about his children
Prince shared in 2021 that he has a “close relationship” with his younger siblings.
“At this point in our life, it doesn’t really feel like there’s that hierarchy of, ‘I’m the older brother,'” he said in an interview with Good Morning Britain.
“It’s more [that] we’re all siblings and we’re kind of all on that same level where my sister has her strengths, and my brother has his strengths, and where I’m not as strong in certain areas, they complement me in that way,” he added.
The eldest of the three Michael Jackson heirs revealed that his famous father would always tell him to lead by example, but he admitted he was able to lean on his siblings after his death.
“We have such a close relationship, and because I’m the oldest, my father would always tell me I have to make sure the group is taken care of, and that I have to kind of be the leader and lead by example,” he said. “But after his passing and kind of us being thrown into the ‘real world,’ my siblings honestly, they picked up the slack that I unfortunately left behind.”
Some people online felt the dispute between the singer’s estate and the IRS was a “mess”
