Michael Jackson’s Son Bigi Takes Grandmother Katherine to Court Over Appeal Spat in Estate Case

Blanket “Bigi” Jackson and his grandmother, Katherine Jackson, are caught in a bitter battle involving the late Michael Jackson’s estate, and it’s escalated to the point where Bigi is taking her to court.

According to court documents obtained by ET, Bigi wants the court to deny his grandmother’s request that the estate fork over money to cover attorney fees she’s incurred in her quest to appeal a court’s prior ruling involving the estate. In court documents filed this week in Los Angeles County Superior Court, Bigi states that “fees claimed for legal services for an appeal do not benefit the Estate and should not be granted.”

Katherine’s appeal stems from a court’s prior ruling in which the judge sided with the estate’s executor’s decision to use estate money for an undisclosed business transaction. In court documents, Bigi says he was initially against the business transaction and has since decided against his grandmother filing an appeal, largely because it is unlikely that the appeal will overturn the court’s prior ruling.

“Bigi did not appeal the Court’s ruling,” the court documents state. “It was apparent that the Court was acting within its discretionary powers … the chances of a reversal on appeal were quite slim and Bigi did not wish to incur further expense in pursuing an appeal.”

Prince Michael Jackson, Blanket Jackson, Paris Jackson, singer Justin Bieber and Katherine Jackson at Grauman’s Chinese Theatre on January 26, 2012 in Hollywood, California.
Barry King/FilmMagic

But despite the expense and long odds, Bigi states in court documents that Katherine decided to pursue an appeal, and she “now claims that she is entitled to reimbursement for all of her attorney fees and costs.” Bigi is now requesting that the court deny Katherine’s requests to have her attorney fees incurred for the appeal covered by the estate.

The 22-year-old son of the late King of Pop, however, is not opposed to having Katherine’s reasonable attorney fees covered for expenses she incurred in litigating the executor’s petition for the business transaction that set all of this in motion.

Bigi believes that “as a matter of equity, Katherine’s actions in litigating executor’s petition … was of benefit to the Court and their heirs as a whole.” That being said, Bigi is questioning the amount she needs to cover those legal expenses.

Katherine Jackson on August 31, 2012 in Gary, Indiana.

Tasos Katopodis/Getty Images

“On the one hand, the proposed transaction was complicated and required a lot of time to analyze and present to the Court,” the court documents state. “On the other hand, it is questionable that four lawyers charging fees of $850 to $1,400 per hour was necessary to perform that work.”

So, as such, Bigi agrees the court “may grant Katherine’s fees and costs” but only “to the extent that the Court finds them reasonable and necessary.”

Bigi’s filing came just days after he was photographed at the movies in Los Angeles. He was spotted out and about just one month after celebrating his 22nd birthday.