A lawyer identified by Joseph Jackson as the family attorney has said Sunday night that he has not seen a will for Michael Jackson. The attorney also suggested that the singer’s mother would seek custody of his children.
“There have been reports of one and we are trying to assess that now,” said New York-based attorney L. Londell McMillan.”However, none has been presented to the family at this time.”
McMillan made the comments Sunday night ahead of what are all but certain to be protracted legal battles over the singer’s estate and custody of his children.
Earlier, Joe Jackson has issued a statement saying that he and his wife, Katherine, had the sole personal and legal authority to act on behalf of “our son and his children.” He also identified McMillan as the family lawyer.
If there is no will, Jackson’s assets would go to his next of kin under California law. Katherine Jackson would be appointed to oversee the best interests of her grandchildren. According to some American legal experts, a fight over Jackson’s children is almost inevitable and that the pop star’s former wife, Debbie Rowe, is most likely to get custody of the two children she had with the singer.
Rowe initially waived her parental rights but later changed her mind and appealed. An appeals court ruled that she was the legal mother of Prince Michael, 12 and 11-year-old Paris Michael Katherine. Prince Michael II, 7 who is Jackson’s youngest son, was conceived by a surrogate mother who could also be claiming custody of him.
In the meantime, the custody tussle gets more complicated with Rowe also coming out to say that Michael Jackson was not the children’s father. She said that she had been artificially inseminated by an anonymous donor.
“Michael was divorced, lonely and wanted children. I was the one who said to him, ‘I will have your babies.’ I offered him my womb – it was a gift. It was something I did to keep him happy.” But after their second child, Jackson wanted nothing to do with her. In fact, she said that they never consumated their marriage.