The fate of Michael Jackson’s estate
Posted June 29, 2009 6:15 pm.
This article is more than 5 years old.
There will likely be some big financial battles in the estate of Michael Jackson.
The Wall Street Journal recently estimated that despite Jackson’s legendary status in the music industry, his legal troubles and love of shopping sprees likely led to a debt of a half-billion dollars.
As for Jackson’s music, copyrights will likely be auctioned off.
The hope for Jackson and his handlers was for a massive concert tour in London this summer, 50 shows to raise upwards of $400-million dollars to pay down his debt.
AEG Live, which was promoting the tour, stands to lose $40-million if the insurance coverage is not substantial enough to cover what was already spent on production.
Jackson held the copyright to his own songs and a stake in the Beatles music catalogue, collectively worth over one-billion dollars.
Jackson’s former accountant testified, during the singer’s 2005 child molestation trial, that he was spending $20 to $30-million more than he was bringing in per year.
Last November, Jackson had to hand over the title on his Neverland estate in California to creditors.
