The Probate Lawyer Blog

Even though she was 81 years old when she died on September 4th, there is no denying that Joan Rivers died too soon. She continued to entertain with an energy level that suggested she was anything but eighty-something. Melissa Rivers has now hired a law firm to find out exactly why Joan died … and who, if anyone, should be held responsible. 

Representatives for Melissa Rivers told E! News and others that she retained a New York law firm to “fully determine all of the facts and circumstances surrounding the death of Joan Rivers.” Other reports state that the law firm is sending letters to the medical center that performed the surgery which led to Joan Rivers death, as well as the doctors’ offices involved, demanding they preserve their records and phone logs. This is the first step in the long process of pursuing a wrongful death lawsuit.

Last week's jury verdict sent shock waves through Michael Jackson fans who were hoping to see concert promoter AEG Live held at least partially responsible for Michael Jackson's death.  Many expressed outrage at the verdict.  At first blush, the jury verdict does seem odd. 

The jury was charged with answering 16 questions, in order, given to them on a jury verdict form.  If they answered any one of the first few questions in the negative, then AEG Live would prevail and there would be no need to answer the remaining questions.

The jury unanimously answered the first question in favor of the Michael Jackson heirs:  AEG Live did hire Dr. Conrad Murray, the jury determined.  This was a hotly disputed issue, with AEG Live arguing that Michael Jackson had hired the doctor himself.  Michael Jackson's legal team cleared that first hurdle.

Jury selection began yesterday in the trial of Katherine Jackson and Michael’s children against concert promoter AEG Live.  The Jackson heirs reportedly will ask the jury for $40 billion in damages against AEG Live.  They blame the company for Dr. Conrad Murray’s ill-fated propofol treatment of the late King of Pop. 

What is this trial really about?  Can the concert promoter be held legally responsible for Dr. Murray’ criminal mistreatment of Michael Jackson?

The answers are complicated and will be sorted out over the course of the next two to three months in front of a Los Angeles jury.  The trial will turn on two key questions:  Did AEG Live “hire” Dr. Murray to treat Michael Jackson, and if so, was it foreseeable to AEG that Dr. Murray could overdose Michael?  If the jury determines that the answer to both questions is yes, then it would then have to determine how much blame should be laid at the feet of AEG Live.

Katherine Jackson and her lawyers claim that AEG Live hired, supervised and controlled Dr. Murray, “putting its desire for massive profits from the Tour over the health and safety of Michael Jackson.”  AEG Live says that only Michael hired the doctor and it had no responsibility for how Dr. Murray treated Michael.

Concert promoter AEG is on the defensive after the Los Angeles Times recently published confidential emails about AEG’s role in Michael Jackson’s final days. The New York Daily News revealed more of the emails in a second article this weekend.  

Together, the emails paint a picture of AEG demanding that the concert tour go on, despite knowing the extremely fragile state Michael Jackson was in at the time.

But what does it all mean, legally?  Should AEG be found liable for Michael Jackson’s death?

Katherine Jackson and other family members sued AEG, blaming them for controlling and failing to supervise Dr. Conrad Murray, thereby causing Jackson’s death.  AEG denies it controlled or supervised Murray at all.  They say he was Jackson’s personal physician and he alone was responsible.

Whether that’s true or not, AEG was clearly involved in some manner.  The Daily News revealed the most telling of the emails that have been publicly disclosed so far, about AEG’s role in Jackson’s final days:

John Goodman is the 48-year old multimillionaire from Palm Beach, Florida who recently made headlines when it was publicly revealed that he adopted his 42-year old girlfriend to help protect the family fortune.  

Goodman did this in the midst of criminal and civil legal proceedings pending against him.  They arose from the February, 2010 drunk driving incident during which Goodman reportedly ran a stop sign, killed a 23-year old man, and fled the scene.  When it was recently revealed that Goodman, in October of last year, had legally adopted his girlfriend, people across the country were outraged.

Goodman’s lawyer issued a statement defending the adoption.  He states that the adoption was done to protect Goodman’s children, not to shield assets from the family of the slain driver who is suing him.

While Goodman has been bashed across the country for his legal maneuver, it actually makes sense from a probate law perspective.  Years ago, Goodman placed $1.5 million into an irrevocable trust for his two children.  By investing that money into stock of the Goodman Manufacturing Co., which grew extraordinarily well under Goodman’s management, the $1.5 million trust fund blossomed to several hundred million dollars.

When Joe Jackson sued for the death of his son Michael Jackson, Katherine Jackson initially said she wanted nothing to do with it.  Now Michael's mother, who is also the guardian of his children, has started her own lawsuit against the concert promotion company that, she claims, pushed Michael to his death.

Katherine's lawsuit blames AEG for the King of Pop's death and seeks damages on behalf of Katherine and Michael's children.  You can download and read the lawsuit here courtesy of TMZ.com.

Among other reasons, it accuses AEG of negligently hiring, failing to supervise and controlling Dr. Conrad Murray, the doctor who has been criminally charged for causing the death by using Propofol (and other drugs) to help Michael sleep, when it was not medically appropriate.