Joe Jackson seeks allowance from son’s estate
November 6, 2009
Yahoo! News
http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20091107/film_nm/us_jackson
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) – Joe Jackson, the elderly father of late pop star Michael Jackson, on Friday filed a court petition seeking an allowance from the singer’s estate, saying his son had supported him for many years.

The legal filing in Los Angeles Superior Court, claims Michael Jackson’s estate has earned an estimated $100 million since the singer’s sudden death on June 25, and administrators expect it to earn $100 million more by the end of the year.

The filing claims Joe Jackson, who suffers from diabetes, was supported by Michael Jackson before his sudden death through payments made to the singer’s mother and Joe Jackson’s wife, Katherine Jackson, which were passed on to Joe Jackson.

Joe Jackson says his expenses exceed $20,000 per month, but his income from U.S. Social Security is a mere $1,700.

“Mr. Jackson’s circumstances require a family allowance because he is 81 years old and Michael Jackson supported him in the same manner as his wife, Katherine Jackson, who was Michael’s mother and who the court granted a family allowance on October 2,” says the petition.

Michael Jackson, known as the King of Pop for his chart-topping record career, died of a drug overdose on June 25 at age 50 in Los Angeles only weeks before he was to have begun a series of comeback concerts in London.

Since then, a movie about the singer has taken in $144 million at global box offices. Sales of his old records have seen a resurgence, and this past week the soundtrack for “This Is It” topped U.S. record charts with sales of 373,000 copies.

In his will, Michael Jackson left his estate to a family trust benefiting his three children, mother and charities.

When the estate’s administrators sought court approval for an allowance to help Katherine Jackson pay her expenses, they excluded Joe Jackson “without cause and for no apparent reason,” according to the petition filed on Friday.

A declaration accompanying the filing states that in the early 2000s, Michael Jackson paid Katherine Jackson roughly $50,000 a month and that amount grew to $66,000 per month later this decade.

The declaration claims Michael Jackson knew some of that money was passed along to Joe Jackson to help him pay his expenses, and the suit says those payments have now stopped.

(Reporting by Bob Tourtellotte and Corinne Heller; editing by Todd Eastham)

Joe Jackson seeks stipend from Michael’s estate
Anthony Mccartney
November 6, 2009
Yahoo! News
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20091107/ap_on_en_mu/us_jackson_estate
LOS ANGELES – Michael Jackson’s father is seeking an allowance from his son’s estate to help cover expenses that exceed $15,000 a month, according to court documents filed Friday. The request seeking an unspecified amount for Joe Jackson was filed by lawyer Brian Oxman, who said there was no apparent reason for the administrators of the estate to not seek an allowance for the Jackson family patriarch.

Michael Jackson’s 2002 will, however, omitted any mention of his father. The two had an often-strained relationship, and Michael Jackson said at one point that he would get physically sick — as a child and as an adult — at the sight of his father.

The singer’s private trust calls for money to be paid to his mother, Katherine, his three young children, and various charities.

A judge has approved more than $26,000 in payments to Katherine Jackson each month, and a $60,000 monthly payment for the care of the children.

The latest court documents said Joe Jackson receives a $1,700 monthly Social Security payment and had relied on his son for support for many years.

“He does not have a regular or steady source of income, and he was dependent upon the money provided by his son, Michael Jackson, through his wife, Katherine Jackson, for his support,” the filing stated.

“It was quite surprising to learn of the request,” Howard Weitzman, an attorney for the administrators of Jackson’s estate, said in a statement. “Mr. Jackson’s petition will be considered as are all requests for money from Michael’s estate.”

Joe Jackson suffers from diabetes and had a stroke in 1998, the filing stated.

A former steelworker, he managed and trained his children and organized the Jackson 5. He has been married to Katherine Jackson for 50 years, but he lists his home in Las Vegas. She lives at a family home in the San Fernando Valley north of Los Angeles.

The filings are inconsistent in several places, listing Joe Jackson’s age as 80 in one place and 81 in another. A declaration states his monthly expenses exceed $20,000 a month, but an itemized list only includes slightly more than $15,000.

That list includes $1,200 a month on rent for his Las Vegas home; $2,500 to eat out; $1,000 on entertainment, gifts and vacations; $2,000 on air travel and $3,000 on hotels.

A phone message left for Oxman was not immediately returned.

A judge on Friday denied Joe Jackson’s petition for an expedited hearing on the matter.

A hearing is scheduled for early 2010 at which time the payments to Katherine Jackson may be re-evaluated.