Michael Jackson News

UPDATE: Jackson family attorney Londell McMillan said Tuesday afternoon that the artist's will has been presented and is due to be filed in probate court.

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The question of whether Michael Jackson had a valid will at the time of his death just got a little more complicated.

Yesterday, parents Joe and Katherine Jackson sought control of Michael's estate, claiming in court documents that the King of Pop died without a will. Hours later, one drafted in 2002 surfaced.

According to the Wall Street Journal, the document—which will no doubt be the centerpiece of a lengthy and ferocious legal battle in months to come—divides the superstar's estate among his mother, his three children (Prince Michael, Paris and Prince Michael II) and at least one charity.

It's unclear what custody arrangements, if any, Jackson made for his three children. But a court ruling yesterday gave temporary guardianship to Katherine.

At least one aspect of the will does appear to be clear: Joe Jackson wasn't named as an heir.

The will, drafted by Jackson's longtime attorney John Branca, may be filed in probate court as early as Thursday.

So far, the family is mum on the document.

"No will has been presented to family or us," Joe and Katherine's lawyer, L. Londell McMillan, told the Journal. "We will review any will when we see it."

Branca represented the singer from 1980 to 2006, and was rehired by Jackson just one week before his sudden death. Branca and music exec John McClain, a longtime friend of Jackson, are named as executors.

According to the Journal, while the pop icon died with roughly $500 million in debt, his assets are believed to dwarf that staggering figure by $200 million.

However, a report of Jackson's finances prepared by Washington D.C.-based accounting firm Thompson, Cobb, Bazilio & Associatesin March 2007 claimed that the pop star had $567.6 million in assets, and a net worth of $236 million.

The five-page report said Jackson's debts totaled $331 million and made the star out to be relatively strapped for actual funds, claiming he had just $668,215 in cash.

Among his more prized assets, meanwhile, are a 50 percent stake in Sony/ATV Music Publishing, which includes the bulk of the Beatles' canon, as well as those of Lady Gaga, the Jonas Brothers, Bob Dylan and Neil Diamond, and Mijac, which controls Jackson's song rights.

(Originally published on June 30, 2009 at 7:30 a.m. PT)

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