25 infamous inheritance disputes

Battles of wills

Having a super-rich relative might sound like a dream – but as these infamous inheritance battles go to show, it can sometimes lead to a lot of trouble.

From legendary musicians to business moguls, read on to discover some of the bitterest inheritance battles of all time. 

All dollar values in US dollars

Jimi Hendrix

Legendary guitarist Jimi Hendrix died in 1970 aged just 27. He left no will, and his attorney managed his estate for 20 years until Jimi's father Al successfully sued for the right to manage his music.

When Al died in 2002, Hendrix's estimated $80 million estate ($140m/£109m in today's money) was left to Al's adopted daughter Janie, but Jimi's brother Leon claimed he had a right to the inheritance, leading to a court battle which he lost. The Hendrix estate has since taken Leon to court for the illegal sale of merchandise.

Pablo Picasso

World-famous artist Pablo Picasso passed away in 1973 at the age of 91. The painter's estate was believed to consist of five homes, gold, bonds, and over 45,000 works of art. By 1980, these assets had been valued at around $250 million, the equivalent of $950 million (£742m) today, though other sources believe Picasso's net worth had entered the billions.

An inheritance dispute raged for six years as Picasso had fathered several children out of wedlock, meaning some of his biological grandchildren weren't legally recognised. His vast estate was eventually settled among six heirs, including his children Claude, Maya, and Paloma.

Joan Crawford

Screen icon Joan Crawford died in 1977, leaving one of the most explosive wills in Hollywood history. The formidable actress and businesswoman famously disinherited her two older children, Christina and Christopher, from her $2 million ($10m/£7.8m today) estate “for reasons which are well-known to them”.

The siblings sued for a share of the estate, arguing that Crawford had been manipulated into disinheriting them by younger daughter Cathy and her husband Jerome. Christina and Christopher were finally awarded a relatively paltry $55,000 ($238k/£186k today). Christina went on to pen Mommie Dearest, a shocking tell-all exposé depicting her mother as a sadistic control freak.

John Lennon

When John Lennon was murdered in 1980, his widow Yoko Ono and his accountant were given control of his estate, which was reported to be worth over £220 million, or $840 million (£656m) in 2024 money. The chief beneficiaries were said to be Ono and her son with Lennon, Sean.

Julian, Lennon's son from his first marriage, was only given a trust fund that had been set up at the time of Lennon's divorce. Julian challenged the will and 16 years later he finally reached an out-of-court settlement with Ono. Although the figure was never published, it was rumoured to be in the region of £20 million ($40m/£31m today).

Bob Marley

When Bob Marley passed away in 1981 aged just 36, the music world lost one of its biggest stars. But for Marley's family, his death wasn't just a tragedy; it also kicked off years of court battles. At the time of his death, Marley reportedly had a fortune of $30 million, or $104 million (£81m) in 2024 money.  However, he never wrote a will.

According to Jamaican law, his estate should have been divided between his wife Rita and his 11 children. However, Marley's bandmates and some of his more distant relatives were determined to stake their claim. It took Rita around 10 years to be granted control of her husband's estate, which reportedly cost millions of dollars in legal fees.

Sonny Bono

Singer Salvatore Phillip “Sonny” Bono, who rose to prominence as part of the duo Sonny and Cher, passed away in a skiing accident in 1998. The singer-turned-politician didn't leave a will, meaning his wife, Mary Bono, had to appeal for executorship of his estate.

Cher, who had been married to Bono before he met Mary, then sued his estate for unpaid alimony. She wasn't the only person to muddy the legal waters; a love child also tried to claim some of Bono's fortune but later withdrew his claim and the estate was divided between Mary and her two children.

The Koch brothers

The four sons of Fred Koch spent nearly 20 years feuding over their father's huge fortune. The argument stemmed from the claim that two of the brothers, Charles (left) and David (right), cheated William and Frederick out of $2.3 billion ($7.3bn/£5.7bn today) when they sold their shares in the company.

For years. the four brothers communicated only through lawyers but finally reconciled in 2001, although the terms of the settlement were not disclosed.

Johnson & Johnson fortune

When J. Seward Johnson (pictured), director of the eponymous pharmaceutical company Johnson & Johnson died in 1983, he left the bulk of his estate, reported to be worth at least $400 million ($1.3bn/£1bn today), to his third wife Barbara Johnson. Given that he'd married Barbara, who was 42 years his junior, at the age of 76 the will provoked uproar from his children.

His six children from former wives contested the will. In an out-of-court settlement, it was agreed that $40 million ($126m/£98m today) would be divided between them. Barbara Johnson walked away with the rest.

J. Howard Marshall

Texan oil billionaire J. Howard Marshall was 89 years old when he married 26-year-old Anna Nicole Smith (pictured) in 1994. He died just over a year later without leaving Anna a dime of his $1.6 billion ($3.3bn/£2.6bn today) estate.

She spent the rest of her life fighting unsuccessfully for a stake in his estate but died in 2007. Her estate fought on for a proportion of Marshall's money, but the only financial winners were said to be the lawyers involved.

Jay Pritzker

Jay Pritzker and his brother Robert built up an estimated $15 billion ($28bn/£22bn today) fortune through their Hyatt hotel empire and various related businesses. Jay died in 1999.

In 2002, his 19-year-old niece Liesel filed a lawsuit against family members, accusing them of dipping into her and her brother's trust funds. The siblings won $500 million ($873m/£682m today) each but lost all claims on the family assets, which were divided up among other family members.

Barry White

Unlike many of the other people on this list, Grammy award-winning singer Barry White, born Barry Carter, did actually write a will. But when he died in 2003 at the age of 58, he hadn't updated it for years. His girlfriend gave birth to a baby just four weeks before White's death and was distraught to realise she wouldn't get anything from his $20 million ($34m/£27m) estate.

She fought for a share but White's family demanded she take a paternity test to prove White was the father of her baby. The dispute was settled when the test showed that White wasn't the real father, and his money was instead divided between his eight biological children.

Sir Peter Ustinov

The estate of the actor Sir Peter Ustinov was dragged through the courts for years, resulting in most of his multimillion-dollar assets being swallowed up by legal fees. He wrote his will in pencil 36 years before he died in 2004 at the age of 82, which led a court to rule he had died intestate (without a will). He was married three times and had four children, but the bulk of his wealth went to his widow Lady Helene Ustinov.

His children claimed that trusts he allegedly set up should have gone to them, but no one could successfully prove their existence. The final outcome is unknown, but his son Igor claimed in 2013 that pursuing the case had left him virtually bankrupt.

Stieg Larsson

Swedish writer Stieg Larsson might have penned bestselling books including The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo, but he never turned his hand to writing a will. When he died aged 50 in 2004, his estate was automatically passed on to his father and brother, leaving his partner of 32 years, Eva Gabrielsson, without a penny.

It wasn't just a portion of Larsson's $27 million ($45m/£35m today) fortune Gabrielsson wanted; she also sought the literary rights to his archive and has publicly criticised the fact that another author was hired to finish an incomplete manuscript Larsson left on his computer.

James Brown

Known as the Godfather of Soul, singer James Brown died in 2006 from heart failure at the age of 73. Estimates of exactly how much he left vary wildly, and it's thought to be anything up to $100 million ($156m/£122m today). His will is said to have specified that roughly $4 million ($6.2m/£4.8m today) should go towards his children and grandchildren, with the rest going towards the I Feel Good Trust, which he set up to give scholarships to poor children in South Carolina.

His wife, Tommie Rae Hynie, and her children contested the will, and the battle went on for 15 years before courts eventually ruled in their favour.

Nina Wang

Once China’s richest woman, Nina Wang died in 2007 and left behind a $4 billion estate, equivalent to $6 billion (£4.7bn) today. Her lover, Feng Shui master Peter Chan, claimed her inheritance but was left with nothing when a court ruled it should all go to charity.

It later transpired that Chan had forged her will, which resulted in him being sentenced to 12 years in jail.

Ike Turner

When rhythm and blues singer Ike Turner died in 2007, there were questions over whether he had left a valid will. He had very few assets, but the value of his estate lay in royalties and the copyright to his songs.

His children and ex-wives became embroiled in a legal battle over who had a claim on his estate. Handwritten wills were produced, but their validity was questioned. The judge ruled in favour of Ike's children in October 2009.

Leona Helmsley

With an estimated fortune of $4.8 billion ($7.3bn/£5.7bn today) when she passed away in 2007, infamous real estate mogul Leona Helmsley requested that the majority of her money be given to charity, as well as small amounts to various relatives. However, the biggest shock of all was that Helmsley left $12 million ($18m/£14m today) to her dog Trouble but only $5 million ($7.6m/£5.9m today) each to two grandsons David and Walter. Two other grandchildren were completely cut out.

A judge decreased the dog's fortune to $2 million ($3m/£2.3m today), awarding the remainder to charity. The other two disinherited grandchildren eventually received $3 million ($4.6m/£3.6m today) each from the estate.

Steve McNair

Killed by his mistress in 2009, NFL quarterback Steve McNair left no will. His estate, reported to be worth around $19.6 million ($29m/£23m today) at the time of his death, was subsequently frozen until the beneficiaries of his fortune could be determined. Two years later, a judge ruled that his wife and their two sons would receive the bulk of his wealth and his two sons from previous relationships were also named as benefactors.

His mother was reportedly evicted from a home he had bought for her by his widow, who also sued for the return of items she claimed had been taken from the property.

Gary Coleman

Actor Gary Coleman, best known for his role in American sitcom Diff'rent Strokes, died in 2010. His ex-wife Shannon Price, who continued to live with him after their divorce, contested his will in which his friend and the former head of his company, Anna Gray, was named as executor and beneficiary.

However, the judge ruled that Price's relationship with Coleman was not a happy one and she lost the case. Gray was confirmed as the main beneficiary of his very small estate.

Amy Winehouse

British singer-songwriter Amy Winehouse was just 27 years old when she died, leaving behind a fortune of around £3 million ($5.5m/£4.3m today) after taxes. Because she hadn't made a will it was unclear who would receive her estate, with potential claimants including her ex-husband Blake Fielder-Civil, her brother Alex, and her parents Mitch and Janis.

Despite the fact her relationship with her parents was rocky, Mitch and Janis ended up inheriting everything – sparking an outcry from some of the singer's fans. They used some of the inheritance to set up the Amy Winehouse Foundation, a charity that supports young people battling drug addiction.

Nelson Mandela

Nelson Mandela, anti-apartheid campaigner and former President of South Africa, died in 2013. He left the bulk of his reported $4.3 million ($5.8m/£4.5m today) estate to his wife Graca Machel, his children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren. His ex-wife Winnie Madikizela-Mandela, went to court, claiming that his country home was rightfully hers as it was bought while they were still married.

It went all the way to the Supreme Court of Appeal, but she lost the case in January 2018 and died just three months later.

Robin Williams

When the actor Robin Williams died in 2014, he left behind an estate estimated to be worth up to $100 million, or $133 million (£104m) in 2024 money. Williams' third wife, Susan Schneider Williams, ended up in a legal battle with his children from previous marriages over the distribution of his assets.

Susan asked a court to rule that the contents of the home she shared with him should be excluded from the items left to the children. They settled out of court. It was reported that Susan was able to keep possessions that held sentimental value, including gifts, clothing, and a bike, while his children ended up with pretty much everything else.

BB King

Legendary blues musician BB King died from heart failure in 2015 at the age of 89. His estate, which was estimated to be worth up to $30 million ($40m/£31m today), was handed to his longtime business manager LaVerne Toney, but it's since been fought over by his 11 surviving children, all with different mothers.

None of the children were said to be named as beneficiaries in King's final will and they claim a previous trust created in 2007, which had benefited each of them, should be reverted to instead. It's unclear if they've been successful.

Prince

When Prince died in 2016, he left behind a huge fortune and no will. A judge ruled that his six siblings should inherit his wealth. However, in the wake of his death, dozens of people are said to have come forward claiming to be his wife, children and other relatives, seeking a portion of his estate.

Disputes surrounding the value of Prince's estate further complicated matters, but in 2022, it was eventually ruled the estate was worth $156 million (£122m). This sum was split between Prince Legacy LLC, which is made up of three of Prince's half-siblings, and Prince OAT Holdings LLC, which is owned by music publishing company Primary Wave.

Prince Legacy LLC has also been the subject of a legal battle, with members of his family seeking to oust two executives from the estate. In July 2024, a court ruled against Prince's relatives but the bitter row looks set to continue.

George Michael

Singer George Michael passed away on 25 December 2016 at the age of 53. The former Wham! frontman had written a will in 2013, leaving his £97 million ($164m/£128m today) estate to his sisters Yioda and Melanie Panayiotou, his father Jack, and several close friends. However, Michael did not leave anything to his boyfriend at the time, Fadi Fawaz, who discovered Michael's body, or former partner Kenny Goss (pictured), who dated Michael between 1996 and 2011.

Goss claimed he was "wholly maintained" by Michael even though they had broken up years before Michael's death. He filed a lawsuit under the UK's Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975, claiming £15,000 ($25k/£20k today) per month. At the time Michael's family are said to have vowed that Goss wouldn't "get a penny". However, just over four years later, Michael’s trustees agreed a settlement with Goss, which saw him receive a share of Michael's estate. The financial details have not been revealed.

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