The Michael Jackson estate has generated an extraordinary $287 million for its beneficiaries, a new legal filing has revealed.
According to court documents filed in Los Angeles Superior Court, executors John Branca and John McClain defended additional payments made to top entertainment lawyers after the estate’s blockbuster sale of its minority stake in EMI Publishing.
The estate acquired the stake in 2012 for just $47,500 and sold it in 2018 for a staggering $287.5 million, a 6,000-fold return.
“This was not an asset Michael or the estate owned at the time of his death,” the filing reads.
“Rather, it was an asset the executors, with the assistance of their legal team, acquired through ingenuity and strategic negotiations.”
The EMI catalog includes music by global stars like Beyoncé, Jay-Z, Rihanna, and Drake.
Branca and McClain argue that attorneys Howard Weitzman and Donald Katz played critical roles in the negotiations, and that their additional $250,000 payments (paid out to third parties), beyond standard hourly fees, were customary in the entertainment industry.
They note similar payments were approved by the court during prior major deals, including the estate’s sale of its Sony/ATV stake.
Objections were raised by attorneys for Paris Jackson, one of Michael’s three children, questioning whether the payouts exceeded limits.
However, executors pushed back, pointing to a 2010 court order authorizing them to hire and pay legal counsel on an ongoing basis without the 70% cap that applies to general estate administration costs.
Since Jackson’s death in 2009, the estate has reportedly erased over $500 million in debt, resolved dozens of legal disputes, and grown into a multi-billion-dollar business empire.
“No court orders have been violated,” the filing asserts, dismissing the objections as untimely and without merit.
Executors have requested an evidentiary hearing if needed to settle the dispute, though they argue the objections should be overruled outright to avoid unnecessary legal costs and delays for beneficiaries.
Jackson was more than $500 million in debt at the time of his death and faced claims from over 60 creditors, according to court documents obtained by PEOPLE in June 2024.
