Prince's $156 Million Estate Reaches Settlement After 6 Years
Prince's $156 million estate has reached a settlement after a six-year court battle. The late singer did not leave a will prior to his death in 2016.
After a lengthy battle, Prince's $156.4 million estate has reached a settlement. When the musician died in 2016, his six half-siblings were named his legal heirs. On Monday (August 1), Minnesota First Judicial District ordered that cash in the estate be divided evenly between Prince Legacy LLC and Prince OAT Holdings LLC, according to CNN.
Prince Legacy LLC is represented by three of Prince's half-siblings Sharon Nelson, John Nelson and Norrine Nelson along with L. Londell McMillan and Charles Spicer of McMillan and Spicer, managed by McMillan’s NorthStar Group. Prince Oat Holdings LLC is owned by music publishing company Primary Wave. The entity previously contained interests held by Tyka Nelson, Omarr Baker and Alfred Jackson. After handling the estate's affairs, Comerica Bank & Trust was discharged following litigation.
"Prince was an iconic superstar and this transfer out of the court's jurisdiction puts in place professional, skilled management," Primary Wave said in the statement obtained by Billboard. "When we announced our acquisition of the additional expectancy interests in the estate last year bringing our ownership interest to 50%, our goal was to protect and grow Prince's incomparable legacy. With the distribution of estate assets, we look forward to a strong and productive working relationship."
In a separate statement, McMillian said he and his partners are "relieved and thrilled to finally be done with the Probate Court system and bankers who do not know the music business and did not know Prince” and look forward to “implementing things the way Prince did.”
“I represented Prince for over 13 years and we led with innovation to reform the music industry – we hope to do the same with his amazing assets and catalog, from his music, film content, exhibits, merchandise, Paisly Park events, branded products and more,” McMillan said in an email. “It is a historical and very exciting time. Prince is almost free to rest now…”