Paris Jackson is challenging the administration of her late father Michael Jackson’s estate, filing a new objection in court in Los Angeles on Tuesday.
The 27-year-old says the estate’s executors, John Branca and John McClain, have abused their authority and taken financial advantage while delaying transparency.
According to the filing, Paris and her brothers — Prince, 28, and Bigi, 23 — did not receive the estate’s accounting until September of this year, about four years late. She is concerned about what she calls “vast sums of cash” remaining untouched and uninvested under the control of the executors.
“Paris is increasingly concerned that the Estate has become a means for John Branca to enrich and glorify himself, rather than serving the interests of the beneficiaries and steadfastly preserving her father’s legacy,” the filing said.
A source close to the estate dismissed the claims, saying: “This is yet another misguided attempt by Paris Jackson’s lawyers to cover themselves… All beneficiaries are well cared for by the estate. This is a feeble attempt to change the narrative of their loss.”
Paris claims that executors collected more than $10 million in compensation in 2021 alone — “more than double” what any beneficiary received that year. She estimates total executor compensation through 2021 at $148.2 million.
She also says there is more than $464 million in real estate coffers sitting in accounts yielding “less than 0.1%,” arguing that smarter investments could have yielded about $41 million.
Her filing questions the executors’ involvement in “risky” entertainment activities, including the upcoming biopic Michael, in which Branca serves as executive producer.
She claims the estate “has turned into a private entertainment investment fund managed more for the benefit of the executors and their counsel than for the benefit of the beneficiaries.”
Paris asks the court to reject the current accounting and enforce a complete, corrected version. A hearing is scheduled for January 13, 2026.
