Paris Jackson has asked the court to order Michael Jackson’s estate to transfer $600million (£450million) into a family trust established for her and her two brothers.

In a fresh legal filing, Paris, 28, alleges that estate executor John Branca has prevented the siblings from accessing their inheritance. She argues there is no valid reason the funds have not been moved into the trust more than 17 years after their father’s death.

The petition, filed on October 29 in Los Angeles Superior Court and seen by Page Six, claims that the estate has generated billion of dollars but the family trust set up to provide for Michael’s three children, Prince, 29, Paris and Bigi, 24 is still unfunded. 

The terms of the family trust state that each child was to begin receiving income from their individual share once they reached the age of 21.

At 30, they were due to receive the first portion of the principal held in their respective trusts—one-third of the total.

A further half of the remaining balance was scheduled to be paid at 35, with each sibling receiving the rest outright at 40. The petition notes that Prince is four months away from turning 30, while Paris turns 29 in April and Bigi reaches 25 in February.

The petition specifically names executor Mr Branca and accuses him of maintaining an “iron grip” on the siblings’ finances, including control over how much money they are permitted to receive.

Mr Branca and John McClain were appointed co-executors of the Michael Jackson estate after the singer died on June 25, 2009, aged 50. Following Mr McClain’s death in May 2026, Mr Branca became the estate’s sole remaining executor.

Mr Branca, an attorney, was first hired by Jackson in 1985. He left the singer’s team in 2006 amid financial disagreements, but returned in 2009—just eight days before Jackson’s death.

Paris claims that Mr Branca has decided how much she, Prince and Bigi receive from the estate, saying those payments have fallen short of the amounts specified under the family trust.

The dispute between Paris and the estate’s executors has continued for months, with the singer making several allegations during the past year.

According to the new filing, her claims have been challenged and discouraged, while the limited funds distributed to the siblings were allegedly reduced by millions after she began pursuing legal action.

“This course of conduct and administration should not continue,” the petition states.

The filing says the Jackson estate has billions of dollars in assets, pointing to the 2018 sale of its 10 per cent stake in EMI Music Publishing to Sony for $287.5million (£214million), as well as the 2020 sale of Neverland Ranch for $22million (£16million).

By December 2024, the estate was reportedly holding around $850million (£633million) in cash and cash equivalents.

The executors have previously placed the value of the estate between $2billion (£1.5billion) and $3billion (£2.2billion), the petition says.

After taking possible liabilities into account, Paris estimates that roughly $600million (£445million) could be available for distribution. She is asking the court to direct Mr Branca to transfer that sum to the family trust, or another amount the judge considers suitable.

The case is due to return to court for a hearing on December 4.

A spokesman for the Michael Jackson Estate told Daily Mail: “Ms. Jackson’s counsel is well aware that the Estate is prevented from fully funding the philanthropic giving and individual trusts for the beneficiaries until several legal hurdles have been removed, including in particular the ongoing IRS litigation where they sought $700million in taxes and penalties from the Estate.

‘The Estate was able to secure a ruling to significantly reduce that amount, but the matter has not been settled and could still change.

‘Further, the claim that the executor has withheld or “cut” payments is a complete fabrication. In fact, more than $200million has already been distributed for the benefit of Paris and the other beneficiaries.

‘Michael Jackson’s will is clear. None of his children receive a distribution until they are in their 30s. The Estate looks forward to the time when all issues are resolved so that their trusts can be fully funded as Michael wanted.’

A spokesperson for Paris responded to the Daily Mail, stating: ‘The Estate is once again deflecting from its own incompetence.’

‘Paris called for the trust to be partially funded, something Mr. Branca had the ability and obligation to do long ago. After years of delay, Paris had no choice but to step in herself.’ 

The ruling is the latest development in the ongoing legal disputes surrounding Michael’s estate.

Last month Paris filed documents in Los Angeles Superior Court asking to reduce the pay of Mr Branca, claiming he has missed a series of deadlines in submitting financial statements for the years 2023 and 2024.

Attorneys for Paris claimed in a filing, which has been reviewed by The Daily Mail, that ‘the gap between executor’s level of compensation and his persistent incompetence is intolerable.’

Paris’s legal team alleged that ‘the only remedy that might prove effective in shaping executor’s conduct’ would be to ‘incrementally reduce executor’s compensation for 2023 and 2024 from 15 percent to 10 percent of the gross entertainment-related income.’

Paris’s attorneys further alleged in the filing that Mr Branca has demonstrated a ‘longstanding refusal, for the better part of a decade, to prioritize timely and complete reporting’ of the estate’s financial statements.

As a result of the ‘mismanagement,’ the estate has been mired in ‘time-consuming litigation,’ Paris’s attorneys claimed, while Paris has allegedly had to ‘expend time and her own resources trying’ to get Mr Branca ‘to fulfill his most basic responsibilities.’

Mr Branca has missed ‘concrete deadlines’ set by the court, Paris’s legal team alleged, adding that the executor is also allegedly asking for the court to approve a payment of $109,219,648.27 ‘in compensation for himself, his now deceased co-executor [John McClain] and his law firm for these two years at issue.’

Paris is requesting the court ‘award her attorneys’ fees and costs,’ as she thinks her moves are ultimately advantageous to the estate.

A spokesman for Paris Jackson told The Daily Mail last week, ‘Enough of the smoke and mirrors – Paris is asking to reduce the management fee.’

Jackson’s spokesman said that Mr Branca ‘has repeatedly failed to meet deadlines ordered by the judge that are in place to provide Paris and her siblings visibility about how the estate is being run.

‘Since money is what motivates executor Branca, this is the only way to enforce the timeline he agreed to.’

A spokesman for Michael Jackson’s estate told The Daily Mail last Wednesday that it was ‘an understatement to say that this motion is completely without merit, nor is it argued on facts.’

Jackson’s estate said that while Paris’s ‘attorneys have motioned for a reduction in executor compensation, when in fact the executors waived that from the estate’s beginning, and have never taken any executor compensation.

‘They are paid a separate, court-ordered management fee for operating the hugely successful Michael Jackson business.’

The estate said it was ‘nonsensical that the motion seeks absurd penalties for the 2023 and 2024 accountings which have already been filed or for the 2025 and 2026 accountings which are not required to be filed for another six and 14 months, respectively.’

Mr Branca’s team has previously stated that under his management, the value of the estate went from $500million in debt to being worth more than $2 billion.

Michael Jackson died at the age of 50 on June 25, 2009 after suffering cardiac arrest in the Los Angeles mansion he was living in. Authorities in February 2010 deemed his death as the result of acute propofol intoxication.

Jackson had been administered the powerful drug by his personal doctor, Dr. Conrad Murray, who told investigators that the singer called the substance (which he took via an IV drip) ‘milk’ and said he needed it to sleep.

Eventually, Murray’s care of Jackson fell under scrutiny after the singer’s death, amid questions about his judgment in giving Jackson the substance in certain doses, and not meeting safety precautions in administering the drug. 

Jackson’s death was ultimately deemed a homicide by investigators and in November of 2011 – more than two years after his death – Murray was convicted of involuntary manslaughter and sentenced to four years in prison.

A supply teacher has been barred from the profession after telling an African pupil that, when he was younger, the child would not have been permitted to attend the classroom.

Anton Van Der Watt, 66, also referred to two Chinese pupils as “ching” and “chong” and made a series of violent threats. In one incident, he allegedly told a pupil he would “rip their vocal chords out and feed them to the lions”.

On his first day covering lessons at a Cheshire school, he reportedly threatened to identify pupils who needed to be hit in the register. He also told another child: “Do you want to go home on crutches? I will break your leg.”

Van Der Watt was sent home early on April 24, after teaching only three lessons at Brine Leas School in Nantwich. Pupils had raised concerns with senior staff.

He has now been prohibited from teaching indefinitely after being found guilty of unacceptable professional conduct.

A teaching tribunal concluded that his behaviour had “fallen significantly short of the standards expected of the profession”.

The panel said he had failed to maintain proper professional boundaries with pupils and had used language that was both threatening and discriminatory.

The tribunal heard that Van Der Watt worked as a supply teacher through the Simply Education agency from January 2019 until April 24, 2025.

On April 24, 2025, he arrived at Brine Leas School, a secondary school in Nantwich attended by about 1,400 pupils.

As a result, the tribunal heard, he was “well-versed” in supply teaching and experienced in managing poor behaviour among pupils.

However, after pupils complained about his conduct that day, the school sent Van Der Watt home before the end of his assignment.

The tribunal heard that each pupil was then asked to submit a handwritten statement describing what they said had taken place.

The accounts contained multiple allegations against Van Der Watt, including claims of racist language, threats and physical violence.

One pupil said he was “in shock” after Van Der Watt allegedly put his fist against Pupil A’s neck and “dug me into the chair”.

The pupil said: “I did not know what to do. He then pinched me in the neck. It did hurt.

“We were being pressed into the chair. I was having to lean forward as he pinched my neck with his fingers.”

Pupil A said the incident left a red mark on his neck where Van Der Watt’s fingers had been.

In an email responding to the allegations, Van Der Watt confirmed that “the incident took place as described”, although he said he was unaware that it had left a red mark on the pupil’s neck.

FIND OUT MORE: Michigan Democrat Abdul El-Sayed Sees Donations Surge After Stevens Betrayal

Van Der Watt said he had been discussing his background when pupils asked him to demonstrate how to control boys who behaved aggressively.

Two other pupils made similar accusations of physical violence against the supply teacher, including that he ‘punched’ one student on the shoulder.

He asked the same student: ‘Do you want to go home on crutches? I will break your leg.’

He continued to ‘demonstrate aggressive behaviour’ by ‘pressing his fists’ into the desks and hitting the desks with a ruler.

He threatened the class, telling them to ‘shut up’ and that he would ‘rip their vocal chords out and feed them to the lions’.

Mr Van Der Watt also kept a ‘register of who needed to be hit’ and ‘verbally abused two students of Chinese origin’ by calling them ‘ching’ and ‘chong’ on the register.

He told these students ‘we know what your real name is’.

He mentioned that ‘people of colour would not be allowed on trains and buses’ when he was younger, and even told a pupil of African origin that ‘when he was younger, he would not have been allowed in his classroom’.

The teacher was also accused of banging a wooden ruler on desks and making aggressive gestures towards children.

He was later reported to Cheshire Police but no action was taken, the Teaching Regulation Agency hearing was told. 

In an email to the supply agency he apologised for much of his behaviour. He said: ‘I am very disappointed and apologetic about the whole incident and feel that I let myself and the profession down by allowing the boys to convince me into demonstrating in a light-hearted manner a way to defuse a potential dangerous situation by using relationships, trust and humour.

‘I definitely had no intention to harm a young person in any shape or form and want my sincere apology be communicated with the student involved.’

Each of these allegations, which were found proven by the professional tribunal, occurred on the same day – which was Mr Van Der Watt’s first day at the school.

Panel chair Sue Davies told the hearing: ‘Whilst the events occurred on one day in April 2025, such events took place over three separate periods.

‘They also involved inappropriate physical contact, verbally aggressive behaviour, and discriminatory language.

‘The panel considered that public confidence in the profession could be seriously weakened if conduct such as that found against Mr Van Der Watt were not treated with the utmost seriousness when regulating the conduct of the profession.’

Mr Van Der Watt, who was said to be genuinely remorseful, cannot apply to teach again until October 2029.

Signing off on the ban, civil servant Marc Cavey said: ‘I am particularly mindful of the finding of a teacher using threatening and discriminatory language towards pupils in this case and the negative impact that such a finding is likely to have on the reputation of the profession.’

Federal officials say ice and severe weather were “certainly a factor” in Sunday afternoon’s private jet crash in Florida.

Nine people died when the Learjet 60 plunged onto a busy, multi-lane highway near Palm Beach and erupted in a massive fireball.

The $2 million business jet was flying from Austin, Texas, to the Bahamas when it lost more than 25,000 feet in about a minute. It ultimately crashed into a residential section of the county, killing everyone aboard.

At 12.47pm, 20-year-old co-pilot Nathalia Filgueiras told the Miami Air Route Traffic Control Centre that the aircraft was experiencing “light, clear ice that is manageable and moderate turbulence.”

The twin-engine, Bombardier-built aircraft was cruising at 35,000 feet and had requested clearance to climb to 37,000 feet when it entered a thunderstorm cell at about 12.48pm.

The jet then plunged into a catastrophic descent of more than 20,000 feet per minute, leading the crew to declare an emergency.

The aircraft’s final transmission came at 12.49.17pm, when a crew member said: “We’re out of time.”

ADS-B Exchange flight-tracking data indicated that the Learjet fell approximately 27,000 feet in around 60 seconds before its signal disappeared.

Ice crystals can develop when moist air rises into colder parts of a storm system and cools. “Anytime you get moisture up in that cold air, you can get icing conditions,” Robert E. Joslin, a professor of practice in the aerospace engineering department at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, told the New York Times.

The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) warns that aircraft operating in icing conditions can face significant “operational risks.”

Ice can build up on the aircraft’s structure and engines, making it harder to maintain the correct flight path, airspeed and level altitude.

The NTSB says that even a quarter-inch of ice along a wing’s leading edge can “cause sudden departure from controlled flight.” Ice on certain systems can also cause instruments to stop working or distort readings for airspeed, altitude and vertical speed.

“It sounds like the plane iced when they flew through the cell,” Daniel Bubb, a former pilot and current instructor at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, told the Times. “They thought at first it was light to moderate icing. But then it sounds like it got really severe.”

In those conditions, Bubb said, an aircraft can become “almost uncontrollable.” He suggested the Learjet may have stalled, leaving the crew unable to recover before the fatal crash.

Dr. Joslin said the aircraft would have faced increasing aerodynamic stress as it began to lose altitude. “When those airloads get excessive, it can also lead to structural failure, which can exacerbate the situation,” he said.

Ice forming on the cockpit windshields could also have limited the pilots’ view, removing an important backup for spotting terrain, other aircraft and dangerous weather, Joslin added.

As Filgueiras and the other pilot tried to guide the jet out of the worsening emergency, they may have been forced to fly with severely restricted visibility.

But even if ice was a factor, human error may have also played a part.

A Learjet 60 has three mechanisms for de-icing: electric heaters in the forward edge of the wings and horizontal stabilisers; an inflatable rubber bladder that can expand to break up ice; and the ability to circulate warm exhaust over the wings.

But for any of the de-icing options to work, ‘the pilots have to activate them,’ Mike McCormick, the former director of air traffic control at the Federal Aviation Administration and a professor at Embry-Riddle, told the newspaper. 

‘So that’s going to be the big question,’ he added. ‘Were the pilots aware of and were they informed that they were entering into weather conditions that would contribute to ice accumulations?’

Gregory A. Feith, a former senior NTSB investigator, theorised that the jet probably encountered ‘clear ice’, suspended water droplets that cover much more area than other kinds of ice encountered in flight.

The pilots may have underestimated the damaging impact the ice had on the flight controls, he added.

They then attempted to deal with the turbulence by climbing, which may have induced a ‘violent pitchover,’ he said, triggering what’s known as a ‘tailplane stall’.

Investigators have not yet disclosed whether any structural failure took place, but some people on social media noticed that the jet’s horizontal stabilisers appeared to be missing in photographs from right before the plane hit the ground.

‘We do have some indication that the aircraft was breaking up before impact,’ Tom Chapman, a National Transportation Safety Board member, said at a news conference on Monday. 

His remark suggests turbulence may have played a role in the crash.

As the jet approached the storm cell, Filgueiras described ‘moderate turbulence,’ with the Learjet experiencing changes in altitude of 600 to 700 feet, as per her remarks to the flight control centre in Miami.

‘That’s a lot of displacement for a turbulence encounter,’ said Patrick Smith, a pilot runs the aviation blog Ask the Pilot. 

He posited that the horizontal stabilisers could have been ‘torn away by unusually strong turbulence or improper reaction to unusually strong turbulences,’ but caveated it was too early to tell.

Dr. Bubb said there was one clear lesson amid the tragedy.

‘This, to me, is just a textbook example of exactly what we’re taught when we’re pilots, and that is, don’t fly through thunderstorms, because you just don’t know their severity,’ he said.

Jeffrey Gregory, 55, of Gilbertsville, Pennsylvania, was behind the controls of the business jet when it crashed in a fiery ball.

The pilot who could be heard in distressing cockpit audio reciting the Lord’s Prayer as the Learjet 60 he was flying nosedived in Florida.

He had been ferrying tech tycoon Adam Robinson, 45, Robinson’s wife Helen Sharp, 40, and their toddlers, Emma, four, and Charlie, two, from Austin, Texas, to the Bahamas for Robinson’s birthday when the tragedy occurred, TMZ reports. 

Robinson’s friends Rachael Reed and Charmi Fehr, and the children’s nanny, Anita Maria Cetina, were also on the private flight.

As federal investigators now work to determine what may have caused the plane to tumble out of the sky at 20,000 feet per minute, the Limerick Chapel where Gregory grew up said he ‘went home to be with the Lord.’

David Peters, an old friend of Gregory’s and a former neighbour, also remembered the pilot as ‘very diligent and dependable.’

SEE ALSO: Ukrainian President Zelenskyy Says Russian Oil Strikes Must Deliver a “Painful” Response Despite U.S. Opposition

He told the US Sun how Gregory, a father of three adult children, had wanted to be a pilot from a young age, as he recalled how he ‘loved wearing his leather bomber jacket.’

Federal Aviation Administration records show Gregory was issued an Airline Transportation Pilot certificate on October 1, 2021, with ratings for multiple jet types – including the Learjet 60. 

He also held a First Class medical certificate dated June 2026.

Close friend and colleague of Jeff Gregory, Thomas Noetzel has launched a fundraiser to support Gregory’s grieving wife and children.

Noetzel, of Gilbertsville, Pennsylvania, set up a GoFundMe campaign with a $16,000 goal to help Gregory’s family cover everyday expenses and provide financial support for his young daughters’ education.

Noetzel described Gregory as more than a colleague, crediting their friendship with making him a better person.

‘Jeff was also a personal friend, and knowing him has made me a better person,’ he wrote on the fundraising page.

The campaign is accepting both one-time and recurring donations, with Noetzel stressing that ongoing financial assistance would help Gregory’s wife and children in the months and years ahead.

‘Please consider donating or sharing this fundraiser,’ he wrote, urging supporters to help the family through their loss.

The fundraiser had collected $972 from eight donors toward its $16,000 goal as of Tuesday morning.

Family friend, Karin Brown, took to Facebook to share photographs of the family, writing beneath: ‘Remembering Jeff Gregory and thanking God for his life.’

He ‘always seemed to have a bent towards righteousness. Came from a godly family who ministered at Limerick Chapel. His dear wife, Cheryl, came and stayed with us in Africa when she did a short term missions trip,’ she added.

Gregory had previously worked for East Coast Aviation, an Allentown-based aviation company from 2016 through 2017, and was a flight instructor with several decades of experience, according to his LinkedIn page.

Following the news of his untimely passing, friends shared their condolences on Gregory and his wife Cheryl’s joint Facebook page.

‘Our hearts are breaking for you Cheryl,’ one friend wrote. ‘Praying that you will know the hope and comfort that only our Savior can give.’

Another friend said she pictured ‘Jeff bowing his head and closing his eyes, preparing his heart to see Jesus while praying The Lord’s Prayer.

‘And as his co-pilot was yelling at him to look out the window, I am sure he was praying for you, Cheryl, and your beautiful family.’

It remains unclear what may have caused the Learjet to plummet into the ground in the town of Greenacres, Florida, where it left a massive crater and destroyed nearby infrastructure.

But when the business jet was heading east over Florida at 35,000 feet, the flight’s co-pilot Nathalia Gadelha Filgueiras could be heard warning air traffic control that the aircraft was coming down.

‘Descending 20,000ft per minute… we’re going to crash into the ground,’ the co-pilot said, as Gregory could be heard reciting the Lord’s Prayer in the background.

Audio from the cockpit captured the young co-pilot attempting to describe the crisis in the Learjet 60 aircraft to air traffic control in the moments before it went down.

She could be heard saying the aircraft had banked 60 degrees, meaning it was flying sideways, and she was noting the altitude changes.

The Daily Mail has chosen not to publish the final seconds of audio, which are extremely distressing.

Filgueiras had also been messaging her fellow pilot boyfriend about facing heavy weather in the minutes before the plane crashed.

Her family told the New York Post that before the crash, Filgueiras texted her boyfriend, Justin: ‘I’ve got turbulence, I’ve got ice.’

NTSB officials say they believe severe weather was a ‘significant factor’ in the disaster and that part of the jet appeared to have broken off before the crash – which occurred just eight miles from President Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago country club.

The president and Air Force One took off from Palm Beach International Airport just an hour before the crash landing, as Trump tried to rally support for Republicans ahead of Tuesday’s midterm elections.

Some aviation experts now believe the plane may have fallen foul of ‘coffin corner’ while trying to climb above two storm systems.

Coffin corner is a phenomenon whereby the jet’s minimum safe speed and maximum safe speed converge into a very narrow range at high altitude, making it extremely difficult to fly safely.

If the plane goes too slow or fast it will stall and quickly become uncontrollable.

As the NTSB now continues to investigate what caused the plane to fall out of the sky, the victims’ families remembered Adam and Helen as ‘devoted parents’ and that their children ‘were the light of their lives’.

‘Helen and Adam were the love affair that will last forever,’ the families said in a joint statement. 

‘Their warmth, generosity and gift for making people feel welcome touched so many lives. Their loss will be felt deeply by all those who loved them and who they loved in return.’

The statement continued: ‘Charmi and Rachel were full of joy and adventure. They loved their people fiercely, fully and without hesitation. From the moment they met, they were all in on each other and the life they were building. They are deeply loved, and we will miss them endlessly.

‘Anita Maria cared for Emma and Charlie with tenderness and devotion, and she was truly part of the family. She showed us a legacy of unconditional love and devotion.’

‘On behalf of friends and family, it is with a heavy heart that we share that our dearest Helen was taken from us too soon,’ read a statement from her family.

‘To know Helen was to love her. The number of people grieving Helen and Adam is a testament to how many people were lucky enough to have them in their lives.’