Trust Company To Temporarily Manage Prince's Estate
MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) -- A judge gave the green light Wednesday for Prince's sister to move forward to protect the singer's assets.
Tyka Nelson said her brother didn't have a will and asked for a special administrator to be appointed to keep Prince's business running, a request the judge granted.
There's no document that we know of in existence to run Prince's multimillion-dollar music empire, estate planning attorney Kimberly Hanlon refers to this latest development as routine.
"Definitely this is something that requires on-the-ground, day-to-day management. It's not surprising at all," Hanlon said.
A conference was held in the morning between Nelson her attorneys and other potential heirs. A judge appointed Bremer Trust as special administrator to temporarily oversee Prince's estate.
Ten different points were made as reasons why Nelson's request was granted:
"The decedent died intestate, or without a will, no personal representative has been appointed, and immediate action and decisions need to be made," part of the documents read.
There's still a chance these court filings will mean nothing, provided someone comes forward with a will or trust.
"Every day that goes by the likelihood of there actually being a trust is less and less," Hanlon said.
A trust allows a third party, the trustee, to hold assets. Those requests would stay private. If Prince didn't have one, this will all play out as part of the public court record.
With so much at stake either way, Hanlon says it's crucial Prince's inner circle act sooner rather than later.
"In this instance absolutely, yes," Hanlon said.
A judge scheduled a hearing in this case for Monday morning at 8:30 a.m. WCCO did contact Nelson's attorney. His office said they would have no comment.
In Carver County alone, Prince owned 16 properties totaling more than $31 million. Paisley Park in Chanhassen is valued at $7 million. Prince also owns the land around it, totaling another $14 million.
