Prince's siblings gathered in a Minnesota court on Monday for a probate hearing on Prince's estate, beginning the process of sorting out the singer's estimated $300 million fortune.
At the hearing, which lasted only minutes, Judge
Kevin Eide confirmed last week's appointment of Bremer Trust, National
Association as the special administrator of Prince's estate,
and Bremer Trust said they are still actively looking for a will --
although at this time, none has been discovered. Prince's sister, Tyka
Nelson, previously stated in court documents that she does not know of any will in existence.
A source tells ET that lawyers also met for about
40 minutes prior to the hearing in the judge's chambers to hash out some
lingering issues, including who will run Paisley Park and Prince's NPG
Records label. The possibility of two other potential heirs also came
up, our source says.
Aside from Tyka, potential beneficiaries of
Prince's fortune include the "Purple Rain" singer's five half-siblings:
John Nelson, Norrine Nelson, Sharon Nelson, Omarr Baker, and Alfred
Jackson. All were present in court on Monday except for John, who is
also the only sibling to not have signed a consent form for Bremer Trust
to handle Prince's estate.
Tyka sat on one side of the bench during the hearing, as her half-siblings sat on the other.
Judge Eide said that all of the heirs have agreed
to open communication. He also noted that he doesn't know what other
claims might be coming, or who else might come forward in the case.
According to Minnesota state law, Prince's estate
will be divided among his siblings, since he didn't leave behind a
living spouse, children, parents, or grandparents.
Last week, ET sat down exclusively with Prince's half-brother, Alfred, who reminisced about his childhood memories with the late icon.
"I miss my brother, because my brother was
everything in the world to me," a clearly emotional Alfred said. "God
bless Prince, God bless the world. He's a legend, he really is."
"He was a genius," he added. "Wherever he heard
music, he could copy it just like that -- like he had a photographic
memory or something."
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