*John Singleton‘s will has been filed by his mother, Sheila Ward. The late director’s last will and testament shows that his daughter, 26-year-old Justice Singleton, his eldest child, is the recipient of his estate valued at approximately $3.8 million.
What’s interesting about the situation is that Singleton wrote the will in 1993 when Justice was his only child. Since then he fathered 6 other children.
Here’s more from TMZ:
Under California law, the 6 children born after the will was signed may have rights, because they were not specifically excluded from the will. If the 6 kids didn’t get anything from John, under California law, they could make a strong case the $3.8 million should be divided into 7 equal parts … in other words, each child would get 1/7th.
We assume the $3.8 million is not the full extent of his assets. He may well have a trust that disposes of other assets that are not included in the will. His full estate is reportedly valued at $35 million. BTW, if the other 6 children are provided for in the trust, they would probably lose their right to collect anything under the will.
According to the docs, John’s personal property is valued at $2.5 million. His real property is valued just shy of $1.3 million. Again, this does not include any assets that may be handled separately in a trust.
The document provides Shelia will get custody of the minor children, of which there are 2. Fact is … if the biological mothers of the children have taken custody, this provision is almost certainly irrelevant.
By the way, Justice’s address is the same as Shelia’s, so it would appear they’re close.
JOHN SINGLETON’S FUNERAL (PRIVATE … FAMILY, FRIENDS ONLY) SET FOR MONDAY
This whole thing is certain to get even more interesting and produce fireworks because, if you recall, Shelia Ward and and John’s other daughter, Cleopatra, 19, went at each other while he lay in a coma after his stroke. Cleopatra foolishly claimed that Sheila was lying about her father even being in a coma, so her credibility is in shreds. Meanwhile, Shelia filed legal docs asking a judge to appoint her temporary conservator so she could handle John’s business affairs. That prompted Cleopatra to claim Shelia was setting things up to deny her (Cleopatra) and her siblings any funds from the estate.
Singleton suffered a stroke last month after he had checked himself into Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in L.A. for a leg problem. His mother says the famed director suffered from hypertension for years, and that is what likely triggered the stroke.
