Music Icon Prince’s Estate Prompts New Court Fight Among Heirs

A nephew and two longtime friends of music legend Prince Rogers Nelson are suing four of his other relatives over claims they’re wrongfully trying to seize control of a company set up to run his estate.

The lawsuit made public Thursday targets two half-sisters, a niece, and a nephew of the late pop icon, who died by accidental fentanyl overdose in 2016 at 57. It was filed by entertainment lawyer L. Londell McMillan, music producer Charles Spicer Jr., and Johnny Nicholas Nelson Torres, a son of Prince’s half-brother John Nelson, who died in 2021.

The complaint in Delaware’s Chancery Court follows less than two years after a Minnesota probate settlement, finalized in 2022, divided Prince’s $156 million estate between his family and friends, on the one hand, and entertainment company Primary Wave Music LLC. Prince died without a will.

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Under that agreement, McMillan and Spicer were designated managing members of the family-and-friends holding company, Prince Legacy LLC, with John and the two half-sisters, Sharon and Norrine Nelson, as non-managing members, according to the court filing. Prince Legacy runs the estate jointly with an affiliate of Primary Wave , which isn’t a party to the litigation.

The lawsuit by McMillan, Spicer, and Torres says Sharon and Norrine—along with Breanna and Allen Nelson, John’s other children—breached Prince Legacy’s operating agreement in December by trying to oust McMillan and Spicer “in bad faith.” The move is an end run around provisions giving each member a veto and right of first refusal over the sale of any member’s stake, according to the court complaint.

After using “third parties to spread false and defamatory claims and disclose confidential company business information over the internet, so it cannot be traced back to the source,” the Nelsons “attempted to ambush the McMillan and Spicer with a vote to remove them and amend the LLC agreement by providing no notice whatsoever of their intent,” the suit says.

An attorney representing Allen, Breanna, and Norrine in Minnesota declined to comment Thursday. Minnesota counsel for Sharon didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.

‘History of Infighting’

According to the lawsuit, the operating agreement gives McMillan and Spicer control over Prince Legacy’s day-to-day business affairs. Each manager can be removed only for failing to perform their duties, which neither has been accused of, and only with the other’s consent, the court filing says.

Despite those restrictions, the Nelsons called a Dec. 20 meeting that they lacked the authority to convene, at which they purported to remove McMillan and Spicer and reduce the consent threshold for selling their interests in the estate, according to the partly redacted complaint. “None of the actions taken at that meeting are valid or binding on the company,” the suit says.

The consequences for the business could be dire, according to the lawsuit, which says the Nelsons have a “history of infighting” and little relevant music industry experience.

“Based on the amount and complexity of the work that Prince Legacy is involved with, they are simply not capable of stepping in and managing its business,” the complaint says. “If they install themselves as managing members, their interference and intervention will make it impossible to carry on the business of Prince Legacy.”

The suit was originally filed under seal Jan. 5.

McMillan, Spicer, and Torres are represented by Morris, Nichols, Arsht & Tunnell LLP and Bassford Remele PA. The Nelsons haven’t yet made a court appearance.

The case is McMillan v. Nelson, Del. Ch., No. 2024-0016, complaint unsealed 1/11/24.