Celebrity Probate: Prince Rogers Nelson

By Mary Lou Floyd, CCLS

Celebrity/Artist:      

Prince (formerly known as the “love symbol”; formerly known as The Artist Formerly Known as Prince, or just The Artist)

Date of Death:       

April 21, 2016

Age at Time of Death: 57 years old

Cause of Death: 

Accidental fentanyl overdose

Assets:

$156.4 million

Estate Plan or Will:

None

Family Tree:

At the time of Prince’s death, his parents had been deceased for over ten years, and he had six siblings from the same father (two were pre-deceased). He had two ex-wives:  Manuela Testonlini (married 2001-2006); and Mayte Garcia (married 1996-2000). One child, Amiir Gregory Nelson, died shortly after childbirth.

Prince died without a will in place, intestate, and he was not survived by a spouse. He resided in Minnesota at the time of his death. According to the laws of Minnesota, the estate would be distributed to his brothers and sisters (and to the children of the deceased siblings) in equal shares, per stirpes.

The estate was valued by the IRS at $156 million, but it took six years to arrive at this figure. Once the value was agreed upon, the estate could be distributed. Prince’s estate was distributed as follows:

  1. Estate split evenly between Prince Legacy LLC and Prince OAT Holdings LLC. Prince Legacy LLC consisting of interests previously held by Sharon Nelson, John Nelson, and Norrine Nelson, three of Prince’s half-siblings. Prince OAT Holdings LLC is owned by Primary Wave, a music publishing company, whose interests were previously held by Tyka Nelson, Omarr Baker, and Alfred Jackson, Prince’s other half-siblings, as well as separate entities owned by Primary Wave.
  2. $3 million to Comerica Bank & Trust, fees for administering the estate (preparation of tax returns, professional fees, expenses, awards in pending litigation involving the estate).
  3. $6.4 million to the IRS for “accuracy-related penalty.”
  4. The remainder of the estate, if any, will be split between Prince OAT Holdings LLC and Prince Legacy LLC.

Information was gathered from online historical websites, various news formats (CBS, NBC), and general online information easily accessed through a general Google search.

 

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