Posted on 06/13/2025 5:36:32 AM PDT by where's_the_Outrage?
A court battle is brewing over Jimmy Buffett's $275 million estate.
The late singer's widow, Jane, and the co-trustee of the estate, Richard Mozenter, have filed lawsuits against one another.
Attorneys said the Buffett case offers important lessons for families planning wealth transfers.
A court battle over the late-singer Jimmy Buffett's $275 million estate has highlighted the growing litigation over the trillions of dollars in wealth being passed down to spouses and families, experts said.
Jimmy Buffett's widow, Jane Buffett, filed a petition last week in a Los Angeles court to remove her co-trustee, Richard Mozenter, from the marital trust created to support her after the singer's death in 2023. Jane Buffett, who married Jimmy in 1977, alleged that Mozenter has been "openly hostile and adversarial" toward her and has refused to give her details on the trust and its financials. She alleged Mozenter is collecting "excessive fees" of $1.7 million a year and that he's mismanaging the trust assets, projecting income of only $2 million, implying annual returns of less than 1%.
Mozenter has filed his own lawsuit in Palm Beach County, Florida, alleging that Jane has been "completely uncooperative" in his efforts to manage the trust. He said Jane has interfered in business decisions, refused to meet with Mozenter and breached her fiduciary duties by "acting in her own interest."
The case has put a spotlight on the estate plans and business empire left by Jimmy Buffett, the singer famous for hits like "Margaritaville," "Cheeseburger in Paradise" and other breezy, beach-vibe hits. Along with his song catalogue, Buffett left homes, cars, planes and a multimillion-dollar stake in his brand business.
(Excerpt) Read more at msn.com ...
Totally reasonable. This bird had nothing to do with the creation and growth of these huge assets, and should have no right to ultimately control them, if that was his wish. Of course she's mad. Who cares?
Pretty harsh.
Jimmy toured every year for 50 consecutive years.
A little more than a one hit wonder.
Some people claim that there’s a woman to blame.
How will she get by without access to the entire $275M? /s
Apparently Buffet realized she was a spendthrift and tried to protect his estate.
But he knows, its his own damn fault.
1.7 million per year to manage a 275 million estate? Sounds like a reasonable number. Perhaps the folks on this thread who have estates in that range can compare that fee to what they pay.
This co-trustee Richard Mozenter is an accountant who had been Buffett’s business manager for 30 years. Obviously Jimmy trusted him for decades.
But now it’s Jane estate to manage and she will likely prevail in this suit and should be able to select whomever she wants to manage it.
Well, they were married since 1977, so there is that.
Wonder if the “pool boy” moves into the main house now?
There are many reasons to put assets in a trust or trusts, taxation being one of them. Unless you've read the trust document it's silly to jump to a conclusion like that.
You would think that the leftist would have left his estate to the government.
“Parrot Heads” derived from Dead Heads. Timothy B. Schmidt came up with it after comparing the fans to Dead Heads
I live in Florida...I know more than a few, lol!
Yeah. And his music sucked. Nobody went to his concerts for his musical talent. They went so they could dress up their vans in shark fins and stuff.
We used to start our vacation every year with a Buffett concert. Got us in vacation mode because they were so much fun. Met Jimmy a few times. Hubby built him a mini naval cannon that actually worked. He talked about he and Cameron firing it off and the neighbors calling the cops. lol After he received it he moved us to the VIP section at an Irvine concert. Good times!
Big lib vs big lib. Who cares? Jimmy was one of the biggest limo libs ever.
If he wanted the kids to have something he should have funded separate trusts in their names.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.