NewsNation
By Paula Froelich
May 8th, 2026
Is Paris Jackson being influenced in Michael Jackson estate battle?
Paris Jackson, the 26-year-old daughter of Michael Jackson, has gone public with allegations John Branca and John McClain, the longtime trustees of her father’s estate, have been misappropriating funds and mismanaging one of the most valuable entertainment empires in history.
In November 2025, Paris filed a 47-page legal objection in Los Angeles Superior Court, accusing Branca and McClain of sitting on more than $464 million in cash while making virtually no effort to invest it productively. She also alleges that they paid out millions to outside law firms (more than they distributed to any individual beneficiary in 2021) and collected over $148 million in compensation for themselves since taking over the estate in 2009.
The court ultimately dismissed the complaint as without merit and granted the estate’s anti-SLAPP motion.
Paris has said she will continue the fight regardless, but her brothers, Prince and Bigi, have chosen to stay out of the fight entirely, with a Jackson associate saying the two believe Paris is receiving “terrible advice.”
