Paris Jackson Seeks $600 Million From Michael Jackson's Estate for Family Trust

Paris Jackson performs at La Maroquinerie in Paris on March 5, 2022. Jackson is asking a Los Angeles judge to order $600 million transferred from her late father's estate to a family trust established for his children. (Photo: Eb59/Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0)

Michael Jackson left behind a fortune and a trust intended to provide for his children. Seventeen years after his death, his daughter says the trust still hasn't received the money it was supposed to hold.

Paris Jackson is asking a Los Angeles judge to order the transfer of $600 million from her father's estate into the Michael Jackson Family Trust, escalating a dispute over how the late superstar's wealth is being managed.

In a petition filed Oct. 29, Jackson argues that the estate has accumulated enough money from music deals, property sales and other transactions to begin funding the trust while preserving sufficient assets to meet its remaining obligations.

The filing points to an estate accounting showing approximately $850 million in cash and cash equivalents at the end of 2024. Her attorneys estimate that roughly $600 million could be transferred after accounting for potential liabilities.

The request is not for an immediate $600 million payment to Paris personally. She wants the money placed in the trust established for her and her brothers, Prince and Bigi.

Under the trust arrangements described in the petition, the siblings were intended to begin receiving income from their respective shares at age 21, followed by portions of the principal at ages 30, 35 and 40.

All three have passed their 21st birthdays, and Prince turns 30 next February.

The estate disputes the suggestion that the children have been deprived of financial support.

In a statement to People, the estate said more than $200 million has already been distributed for the beneficiaries' benefit. It also denied allegations that payments to the siblings were withheld or reduced after Paris began questioning the estate's management.

The executors contend that unresolved legal and financial obligations, including a continuing tax dispute with the Internal Revenue Service, prevent the trusts from being fully funded.

The IRS originally sought approximately $700 million in taxes and penalties, according to the estate. Although that amount was substantially reduced through litigation, the estate maintains that the matter remains unresolved.

Paris' attorneys argue that those uncertainties do not justify delaying a partial transfer.

Her filing cites proceeds from major transactions involving EMI Music Publishing, Neverland Ranch and a deal with Sony involving Jackson's music and intellectual property. Together, the transactions generated more than $1 billion in cash before taxes and expenses, the petition contends.

The dispute is part of a broader fight over the administration of an estate that was deeply in debt when Jackson died in 2009 but subsequently became one of the music industry's most valuable collections of assets.

Earlier this year, a judge ordered $625,000 in bonus payments made to outside law firms returned to the estate after sustaining an objection by Paris. The estate disagreed with that decision and emphasized that the payments had not gone to its executors.

John Branca is now the estate's remaining executor following the death of longtime co-executor John McClain in May.

A hearing on Paris Jackson's request is scheduled for Dec. 4.