Elaine Marshall v. J. Marshall, Iii

This case marks the third time we have been asked to intervene in the infamous feud over the estate of the late Texas oil magnate and billionaire J. Howard Marshall, II (“J. Howard”). J. Howard died in 1995, leaving nearly all his assets to his son, E. Pierce Marshall (“Pierce”), but excluding his young wife, Vickie Lynn Marshall, also known as Anna Nicole Smith (“Vickie”), and his other son, J. Howard Marshall, III (“Howard”), from receiving any part of his fortune. The ensuing controversy, pitting wife against son and brothers against each other, has defied resolution for nearly two decades, and has survived almost all of its original players.

After J. Howard died, Vickie and Howard each unsuccessfully challenged his will in Texas probate court. In addition to losing the will contest, Howard suffered a multimillion dollar judgment after Pierce successfully counterclaimed against him on the basis of fraud. Following this loss, Howard and his wife, llene, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in the Central District of California. Their case was assigned to United States Bankruptcy Judge Samuel Bufford, who had previously presided over Vickie’s Chapter 11 bankruptcy…