Court to hear Anna Nicole appeal
2010-09-28 20:03
Washington - The US Supreme Court will hear an appeal from the estate of Anna Nicole Smith in a bitter, 15-year battle over the fortune of the elderly Texas billionaire whom Smith married in the mid-1990s.
The justices on Tuesday decided to reconsider an appeals court ruling against Smith's estate, which wants to capture some of the $1.6bn estate of her husband, J Howard Marshall, who died in 1995.
Marshall's will left nearly all his money to his son, E Pierce Marshall, and nothing to Smith. The younger Marshall died in 2006 and Smith died of a drug overdose in 2008.
Smith challenged the will, claiming that her husband promised to leave her more than $300m above the $7m in cash and gifts showered on her during their 14-month marriage.
Smith's 4-year-old daughter, Dannielynn Birkhead, is the heir to her estate. The girl's father, Larry Birkhead, and attorney Howard K Stern were placed in charge of the estate.
Stern is on trial for drug conspiracy charges involving opiates and sedatives allegedly given to Smith.
The fight over Marshall's fortune has been to the Supreme Court once before.
- AP
