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Every region has its own law of inheritance
Estates, successions and family fortunes region by region, and every country with its own page.
Every country
Each case counts under the country that holds its place today. Countries with three cases or more have their own page.
North America
Latin America
Middle East
East Asia
Oceania
North America
Wills, estates and inheritance fights in the United States and Canada. 605 stories.
- 2026Dolly Parton's estate company sued her nephew and former security chief one month after her death, alleging threats to ruin her brandwbur.org and 5 more
- 2009Michael Jackson's estate put its value at $5.1 million, the Tax Court set $111.5 million, and a judge later ordered $625,000 in bonuses returnedabcnews.com and 8 more
- 2009Michael Jackson's companies face abuse suits from Wade Robson and James Safechuck, revived on appeal in 2023 and set for trial in 2028The Guardian and 6 more
- 1973A Chinese fast-food chain used a Bruce Lee figure as its logo for 15 years, and his daughter sued for 210 million yuangulfnews.com and 3 more
- 1977Elvis Presley's probate judge ruled that Colonel Parker's 50 percent share "shocks the conscience of the court" and ordered the estate to sue himCourtListener and 10 more
- 2023Lisa Marie Presley's mother contested her trust, then resigned as trustee in exchange for $1 million and a grave near Elvis at Gracelandunicourt.com and 10 more
Latin America
Estates, conquest grants and family fortunes in Mexico, Central and South America and the Caribbean. 112 stories.
- 2022A Miami businessman burned a drawing he said was Frida Kahlo's to sell 10,000 NFTs, and Mexico investigated because her work is a national monumentSmithsonian Magazine and 2 more
- 2020Diego Maradona left five recognised heirs, more paternity claims, and two trials over his death and his namelacapital.com.ar and 3 more
- 2019El Chapo was ordered to forfeit $12.6 billion, and two of the sons who inherited his cartel faction pleaded guilty in Chicagoapi-prod.gothamist.com and 2 more
- 2024Liam Payne fell from a Buenos Aires hotel balcony with no will, and his £24 million went to his seven-year-old sontribune.com.pk and 3 more
- 1954Diego Rivera locked Frida Kahlo's bathroom after she died, and her clothes and papers stayed sealed for 50 yearsgetty.edu and 3 more
- 1967Bolivian officers cut off Che Guevara's hands in 1967, a minister had them smuggled toward Cuba in a jar, and his body was found under an airstrip 30 years laterpagina12.com.ar and 3 more
Middle East
Dynasties, sultans, kings and family firms from Egypt and the Levant to the Gulf and Iran. 181 stories.
- 1983The FBI believed Meyer Lansky had $300 million hidden; he died in Miami with less than $35,000 in the bankthemobmuseum.org and 2 more
- 2014Spain's King Felipe renounced his father's inheritance after a $100 million Saudi payment came to light, and Juan Carlos left for Abu Dhabieuronews.com and 2 more
- 2006Saddam Hussein was buried in his own mausoleum, the mausoleum was destroyed, and no one will say where his body iskuwaittimes.com and 3 more
- 1975Saudi King Faisal was shot by his nephew during an audience, and the nephew was beheaded in a Riyadh squareWikipedia (English) and 1 more
- 1975Umm Kulthum's heirs sued to pull the biopic "El Sett" from cinemas, and Egypt's Administrative Court ordered them to pay costsInternet Archive and 3 more
- 1951Iraq took the property of the Jews who left in 1951, US troops found their community's books in a flooded secret-police basement in 2003, and the books have stayed in Americajns.org and 3 more
Africa
Estates and inheritance cases across Africa. 58 stories.
- 1953The Transvaal bought the largest diamond ever found as a birthday gift for Edward VII, the cutter kept the smaller stones as his fee, and South Africans petition for its returnUK Parliament, Hansard and 3 more
- 2013Nelson Mandela's grandson moved three of Mandela's children's graves to his own village, and 16 relatives won a court order to return them to Qunu in 2013mg.co.za and 4 more
- 1997Fela Kuti's brother announced he died of AIDS, he was buried in his own courtyard, and his estate signed with WME 26 years lateripsnews.net and 5 more
- 1971Idi Amin seized the Madhvani sugar estate in 1972; the widow came back to one working tractor, and the heirs split again in 2020csmonitor.com and 2 more
- 1975Ethiopia's Derg said Haile Selassie died after prostate surgery, and his bones were found under his palace office 16 years laterWikipedia (English) and 1 more
- 1997Switzerland released Mobutu Sese Seko's frozen money to his heirs, and his body stays in Rabatswissinfo.ch and 7 more
South Asia
Princely states, family firms and inheritance cases in India, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka. 93 stories.
- 2004A Qatari prince's letter said Nawaz Sharif's father had willed his Gulf profits to a grandson, and courts fought for six years over four Park Lane flatsoffshoreleaks.icij.org and 4 more
- 2012Rajesh Khanna's live-in partner sued his widow and daughters for 14 years, and his bungalow was sold for Rs 90 crore and torn downThe Times of India and 5 more
- 1987Kishore Kumar's nephew agreed to sell his childhood home for Rs 14 crore, his son published a legal notice to stop it, and the house became a ruintheweek.in and 3 more
- 2020A Delhi court ruled that Sushant Singh Rajput's publicity rights died with him, so his father could not stop a film about his deathLiveLaw and 2 more
- 2022Sidhu Moose Wala's parents won his song copyright in court, had a son by IVF at 58, and were questioned by the state over the babyLiveLaw and 4 more
- 1982A helicopter killed Vic Morrow and two child actors on the Twilight Zone set in 1982, and director John Landis and four others were tried for manslaughter and acquitted in 1987vice.com and 1 more
East Asia
Imperial houses, family conglomerates and estates in China, Japan, Korea and Southeast Asia. 204 stories.
- 1973A Chinese fast-food chain used a Bruce Lee figure as its logo for 15 years, and his daughter sued for 210 million yuangulfnews.com and 3 more
- 2021Japan's Princess Mako refused a ¥140 million payout to marry a commoner and lost her royal statusWikipedia (English) and 1 more
- 2009David Carradine was found dead in a Bangkok closet in 2009; Thai police said suicide, the family's pathologist said accident, and his widow sued the film companyabcnews.com and 3 more
- 1970Mishima's widow boycotted Paul Schrader's 1985 film, and his children won a copyright suit over his lettersavclub.com and 2 more
- 2022Nexon founder Kim Jung-ju's family paid inheritance tax with 29.3 percent of his holding company, and the government could not find a buyerKorea JoongAng Daily and 2 more
- 2015Lee Kuan Yew's will asked that his house be demolished, and Singapore made it a national monument over his son's objectionmccy.gov.sg and 3 more
Oceania
Estates and inheritance cases in Australia, New Zealand and the Pacific. 14 stories.
- 1997Michael Hutchence left half his estate to his baby daughter, and the money went into offshore trusts she did not controltheage.com.au and 3 more
- 1992Gina Rinehart's children sued her for control of a $5 billion family trust, and her daughter replaced her as trusteeInternet Archive and 2 more
- 2012Tonga's constitution lets only children born in marriage inherit the throne or a noble estate, so King George Tupou V's daughter could not succeed himWikisource (primary text) and 4 more
- 2024The Māori King's council passed over the son who had stood in for him and named his youngest child queen at his funeralteaonews.co.nz and 2 more
- 1992Eddie Mabo died five months before the High Court upheld Meriam title to his island, and his grave was defaced the day after his memorialslq.qld.gov.au and 4 more
- 2014"Putin's banker" put $100 million into New Zealand trusts for his family, and a London judge ruled the trusts were shamsThe National Archives, Find Case Law and 2 more
Europe
Royal houses, landed families, bankers and artists across Europe. 777 stories.
- 1991Freddie Mercury left his house and half his fortune to his ex-girlfriend, who buried his ashes in a place only she knowsThe Independent and 1 more
- 1969Judy Garland's fifth husband buried her in New York; 48 years later her children moved her to HollywoodCBS News and 3 more
- 1977Two men stole Charlie Chaplin's coffin for ransom, and his widow refused to payhistory.co.uk and 3 more
- 2011Amy Winehouse's father sued her friends over $1.2 million from her dresses and lostwtop.com and 2 more
- 1993Audrey Hepburn's two sons ended up on opposite sides of a lawsuit over who controls her imagenbclosangeles.com and 1 more
- 2013James Gandolfini's will left 80 percent of an estimated $70 million estate to his sisters and infant daughter, and a tax lawyer said about $30 million would go to taxesABA Journal and 3 more