Paris Jackson has asked a Los Angeles court to order a $600 million transfer from Michael Jackson’s estate to the family trust benefiting his three children. The application was filed on October 29, more than 17 years after the singer’s death. The estate opposes the request, citing unresolved legal and tax matters that it says prevent the proposed funding from proceeding.
Paris Jackson has returned to court over her father’s estate, seeking a $600 million transfer to the trust created for herself and her brothers, Prince and Bigi. The 28-year-old argues that, despite substantial revenue generated by the estate’s management, the family trust remains unfunded in the manner intended. Her application seeks action for all three beneficiaries rather than a payment of that amount exclusively to her.
The filing was submitted on October 29 in Los Angeles. It requests a partial transfer of assets to the Michael Jackson Family Trust and has not yet been approved. The court is being asked to determine whether the financial and legal conditions allow it to proceed. The request should therefore be distinguished from an order already made or money that has already been distributed.
According to her lawyers, the intended funding remains outstanding more than 17 years after Michael Jackson died on June 25, 2009. Paris Jackson argues that the prolonged delay does not reflect her father’s wishes for distributing money to his children. That is her side’s interpretation of the obligations, which the estate disputes in explaining why it believes the outstanding matters still prevent the proposed transfer.
The application describes arrangements under which the three beneficiaries would begin receiving income from their shares after turning 21, with staged distributions of principal at 30, 35 and 40. Prince is 29, Paris is 28 and Bigi is 24. Her lawyers point to Prince approaching 30 and argue that insufficient funding leaves the beneficiaries dependent on estate-management decisions about the money they receive.
On the financial question, Paris Jackson’s side cites figures showing approximately $850 million in cash and cash equivalents at the end of 2024. Her lawyers argue that around $600 million could be transferred even after allowing for potential obligations. This is an argument supporting partial funding, not a judicial determination that the entire requested sum is immediately available or free from competing financial and legal requirements.
The filing also refers to major transactions after the singer’s death. These include the $287.5 million sale of the EMI Music Publishing interest in 2018, the $22 million sale of Neverland Ranch in 2020 and a Sony agreement involving music rights and other assets. Her side says these deals generated more than $1 billion before taxes and expenses, citing them as evidence of the estate’s resources.
Earlier estimates valuing the estate at between $2 billion and $3 billion are also invoked in support of the request. Those valuations are separate from the amount of cash available for distribution. The estate rejects the approach taken in the application, maintaining that unresolved legal issues still prevent full funding of the trusts. Its response specifically points to the continuing dispute with the Internal Revenue Service.
The IRS had sought approximately $700 million in taxes and penalties. According to the estate, a ruling has substantially reduced that amount, but the tax case has not been finally resolved. It argues that cash balances cannot therefore all be treated as distributable funds before obligations are settled. This position directly disputes the assumption that the proposed partial transfer can safely proceed at the level requested.
The disagreement also concerns payments already made for Michael Jackson’s children. The estate denies arbitrarily withholding or reducing their entitlements and says more than $200 million has already been provided for beneficiaries. It also points to age thresholds for distributions of principal. These statements form its answer to the funding dispute and should be kept separate from the question of whether the trust itself has received the requested assets.
A representative for Paris Jackson maintains that partial funding could have taken place years ago and accuses the estate of avoiding the substance of the request. Her side describes the new court action as necessary after a prolonged delay. The competing positions concern both the timing of funding and the interpretation of the estate’s ability to begin moving assets while other matters remain unresolved.
The case follows other disagreements over management of the estate. In May 2026, a court ordered the return of $625,000 in additional fees paid to outside law firms. That was a separate matter, as is a dispute concerning approximately $109.2 million in challenged fees. These proceedings provide background to the relationship between the parties but do not themselves decide the new request to fund the family trust.
John Branca and John McClain managed the estate after the singer’s death. McClain died in May 2026, leaving Branca as sole executor. The next hearing is scheduled for December 4, 2026. Paris Jackson seeks the $600 million transfer or another amount the court considers appropriate. Until a ruling is issued, the request remains pending and both sides retain different positions on when funding can proceed.
