After nineteen years of battling from probate court all of the way to the United States Supreme Court twice a recent court ruling seems to have ended the battle between the estates of Anna Nicole Smith and Pierce Marshall, for now. Called “The Grand-Daddy of all Estate Battles” these two estates have been battling over the $1.6 billion fortune left by Ms. Smith’s husband and Mr. Marshall’s father, J. Howard Marshall, for almost two decades.
History of the Feud
Federal court proceedings began regarding this estate in 1996 when Anna Nicole Smith filed for bankruptcy in California. The bankruptcy led to a $475 million judgment against Pierce Marshall, but only temporarily. The judgment was reduced to $88 million on appeal, and then appealed again, making to the United States Supreme Court on two separate occasions. After the second trip to the Supreme Court, where the judges rejected Anna Nicole Smith’s claims, it had appeared then, too, that the battle was over.