by James “Mitch” Mitchell
and Tamera H. Bennett
James Brown, Jerry Garcia, and Jimi Hendrix all held very different spots in the world of music and entertainment, though there is some arguable overlap given the extent of each one’s influence. Yet, one thing they most certainly all have in common after their respective deaths concerns problems in handling their considerable assets, including royalty and trademark rights.
This is a three part blog post taking a look at the interesting twist, turns and legal wrangling by these guys’ heirs and other third parties.
James Brown
James Brown, the Godfather of Soul, died Christmas Day 2006 from congestive heart failure resulting from complications of pneumonia. Problems with Brown’s estate came to the surface when it was clear that his wife at the time of his death, Tomi Rae Hynie, and the child from that relationship, were not included in his will that was executed in 2000. Also in 2000, Brown created the “I Feel Good Irrevocable Trust” which included the bulk of his musical copyright assets and real estate assets. The beneficiary of the trust is a charitable organization.
To add to the exciting mix, Brown was separated from Hynie at the time of his death and there are legal questions as to the validity of their actual marriage. Under South Carolina law, Hynie and the child from that relationship are entitled to an inheritance so long as they were not specifically disinherited in the will.
The family members reached a Settlement Agreement in 2007, which the court rejected. On April 6, 2009, the judge wrapped up hearings on the matter and a ruling on the division of the estate is anticipated.
More spin on the estate came to light also on April 6, 2009 when a former publicist of James Brown, Jacque Hollander, sued for a stake of the “I Feel Good” trust. Hollander alleges the trust is illusory and the assets from the illusory trust were instead property of a partnership between her and Brown that was established in 1987 and never dissolved. Hollander v. Estate of James Brown (09 CV 2147).
Be watching for upcoming blog posts on Jimi Hendrix and Jerry Garcia.
June 26th, 2009 at 6:41 pm
[...] can be a plan in place and litigation still insue. I blogged here about the ongoing dispute among the heirs of James Brown and the challenges raised to his trust [...]
June 29th, 2009 at 3:11 pm
[...] James Brown, Jerry Garcia, and Jimi Hendrix all held very different spots in the world of music and entertainment ….. Part one of this post on James Brown is here. [...]
October 19th, 2010 at 12:24 pm
[...] estates we discussed during the CLE included Jack Kerouac, Darrell Wayne Perry, James Brown, and Roger [...]
May 25th, 2011 at 9:37 am
[...] By clicking on the names you can read more on the estates of Bobby Fischer, Jack Kerouac, Darrell “Wayne” Perry, and James Brown. [...]
October 17th, 2011 at 2:48 am
For updated information, visit Facebook page James Brown “I Feel Good” Trust (FOIA Concerns). Of particular interest, the affidavit filed 9-29-11. Outlines involvement of former AG Henry McMaster, current AG Alan Wilson, outside attorney Ken Wingate, current trustee Russell Bauknight (who claimed to the IRS that the Brown music empire was valued at only $4.7 million at his death, when the royalties bring in about $4-5 million a year.) BTW, his companion was not his wife and had signed an agreement that stated she would never make such a claim.
Newberry FOIA lawsuits may hold the answer: will James Brown’s last wish be granted?
The Newerry Observer Oct. 5, 2011
Two Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) lawsuits filed in Newberry County may prove pivotal in answering the question: will entertainment icon James Brown be denied his last wish?
According to Albert “Buddy” Dallas, one of Brown’s original trustees, Brown spent over $20,000 and almost 20 years to make sure his estate plan was exactly as he wanted it.
In a telephone interview, Dallas said he had worked with Brown over a 24-year period, and throughout that time, Brown consistently voiced his concern for children getting an education.
“I was with James Brown in 1987 at the Scottish Rites Hospital in Atlanta when he announced publicly that he would be leaving his estate to educate needy and underprivileged children,” Dallas said.
Brown had only an 8th grade education, and he felt education was the needy child’s only way out. Brown promoted education at every opportunity, even in his music, Dallas said.
Brown’s song, “Don’t Be a Dropout,” repeats the refrain, “without education, you might as well be dead.”
Dallas said that Brown formalized his wishes in his will and a trust, dated Aug. 1, 2000, and that the trust is recorded in two states, Georgia and South Carolina. Brown’s will and estate plan were under discussion with his attorney for over two years, and his children were aware of his wishes.
According to a Rolling Stone article in July, Brown and his children were not close, and in 1988 at a business meeting he declared, “They will not ride on my back when I’m gone, Mr. Dallas! Do you hear me?”
“Mr. Brown’s testamentary scheme was quite simple and extremely altruistic,” Dallas said, explaining that Brown’s estate plan provided for three things:
1. To six children, named in the will, Brown left his household and personal effects.
2. For his “blood” grandchildren, Brown set up an educational trust.
3. Everything else Brown owned, including royalties and the right to his image, he left to an education trust for needy and underprivileged children in South Carolina and Georgia.
“Here we are, five years later, and not one needy or underprivileged child has received one dime,” Dallas said.
What happened to thwart the final wishes of the “Godfather of Soul”?
Brown’s will was clear that anyone who challenged his estate plan would receive nothing. Yet, within a year of his death on Christmas Day, 2006, Brown’s will had been challenged by some of the children specifically excluded from inheriting his music empire, as well as by the woman with whom he lived.
According to previous filings, Tommie Rae Hynie Brown was married to another man at the time she exchanged vows with Brown. Therefore, she could not be Brown’s wife. Given that Brown was widely reported to have had a vasectomy in the early 1980s, there is also a question of paternity regarding her son.
At the time the challenges to Brown’s will were made, the three original trustees had resigned.
In November 2007, the Aiken Court appointed Adele Pope of Newberry and Aiken attorney Robert Buchanan to replace them.
In August of 2008, AG Henry McMaster entered into a settlement agreement that called for placing Brown’s assets in a deceptively-named “James Brown Legacy” Trust–deceptively named, in that the “Legacy” Trust was never a part of Brown’s estate plan. Under the agreement, more than half of the Legacy Trust assets would then be given to some of those who had contested the will.
McMaster named Columbia CPA Russell Bauknight the sole trustee of Brown’s assets. Bauknight was appointed by the AG and serves at the AG’s pleasure, giving the AG full control of the Legacy Trust.
McMaster asked that Pope and Buchanan sign a statement not to criticize him or the agreement. In a previously filed affidavit, attorney Pope asserts she has a duty to warn her clients with foundations that in South Carolina, the AG may attempt to rewrite their estate plans.
Buchanan and Pope appealed McMaster’s settlement agreement in the summer of 2009.
They are now being sued. In the lawsuit, Columbia attorney Ken Wingate serves as outside counsel for the State, current trustee Bauknight, and 10 private plaintiffs – including some of Brown’s claimed heirs.
The lawsuit alleges Pope and Buchanan caused tens of millions of dollars of damage to Brown’s music empire during their tenure as trustees, which ended in early 2009.
Despite Wingate’s allegation, Bauknight has filed documents with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), claiming that at Brown’s death in 2006, his music empire was worth only $4.7 million.
Pope and Buchanan valued the assets at $100 million, less a $15 million debt.
The figure of $100 million has been widely reported in national publications such as Forbes and the Rolling Stone, and all previous trustees have concurred in the higher valuation.
As early as 1999, Brown borrowed $26 million, using his music assets as collateral. In announcing the bond deal, Wall Street financier David Pullman stated in a press release: “James Brown has created over $100 million in entertainment assets which continue to generate royalties…”
Between 1999 and 2006, Brown earned about $50 million in royalties and fees for performances, and in a 2007 prospectus, some of Brown’s children estimated the value of his music empire as high as $200 million.
In 2010 alone, Brown’s royalties were reported at $5.4 million.
AG Alan Wilson has not released the documents requested by Pope in the Newberry FOIA lawsuits.
The documents Pope is seeking include: a copy of Wingate’s contingency-fee contract with the AG’s office; documents related to the valuation of Brown’s estate and trust; a copy of the James Brown Legacy Trust; and the authorization document under which Bauknight purports to speak for the AG’s office.
These documents may help to determine how much education funding will be available to needy and deserving children in South Carolina and Georgia, how much of James Brown’s music empire will be given to those he specifically excluded from inheriting it, if the State can take control of Brown’s personal estate plan and rewrite it—and whether the Freedom of Information Act will be undermined by the very public official responsible for enforcing it.
The S.C. Supreme Court will hear arguments in the Brown case on Nov. 1.