6 days ago
Jimmy Buffett's $275 Million Estate Sparks Sprawling Margaritaville Legal Battle
A legal battle has broken over Jimmy Buffets $275 million estate, with his wife and accountant initiating proceedings for control of the trust.
In a petition filed in Los Angeles Superior Court on Tuesday, Jane Buffett points to an 'unsolvable rift' with Rick Mozenter, the co-trustee of her husband's estate allegedly acting against her best interests. She accuses Mozenter of mismanaging the trust, which is paying her roughly $2 million annually at a rate of return of less than one percent. Based on the estimate, Mozenter told the late singer's wife to 'consider adjustments' to her lifestyle or sell her own assets to make up the difference, the lawsuit says.
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The relationship collapsed last month, with Jane Buffett telling Mozenter that she'd sue unless he resigned by Monday. Mozenter, in turn, filed a petition in Florida state court over the weekend to remove her as co-trustee and personal representative of the estate.
Jimmy Buffett died in 2023 following a four-year battle with Merkel cell skin cancer. After initially pursuing a career as a country singer, he found success in the early '70s when he scored his first record contract and later adopted the laid-back beach-bum persona he's most recognized for today. Mainstream attention followed the release of his sixth album, which included hit track 'Margaritaville,' which spawned a sprawling hospitality company partially owned by the trust.
When Jimmy Buffett died, most of his assets were held in or transferred to a trust for his wife. A month later, Jane Buffett asked Mozenter how much money he expected her to receive but was allegedly stonewalled for over a year, the lawsuit alleges. She ultimately hired her own counsel to press for the information.
When Mozenter responded earlier this year, Jane Buffett was told that the trust's $275 million in assets would net her less than $2 million anually, she says. Mozenter allegedly acknowledged that Margaritaville, which the trust owns 20 percent of, had paid out roughly $14 million over the prior 18 months but that he decided against including any estimate of future distributions from the company in his analysis of future income.
Margaritaville 'continues to evaluate future business opporutnities and how they deploy existing liquid assets,' Mozenter told Jane Buffett, according to the complaint.
If the estimates are correct, the lawsuit claims that Mozenter, whose firm is paid $1.7 million annually to oversee the trust, is 'either not competent to administer the trust or unwilling to act in Mrs. Buffett's best interests.'
Also at issue: Mozenter pushing Jane Buffett to approve his request that Jeffrey Smith be retained as counsel for cotrustees. She takes issue with Smith accusing her of breaching her fiduciary duty to the trust by suggesting that it rely on Irvin Azoff, Jimmy Buffett's longtime music manager, to negotiate an agreement with a production company over a planned documentary about the singer. The tipping point came when his firm sent her a voluminous draft of the estate's tax returns and asked her to provide any comments within three days, the lawsuit alleges. Smith, who has since resigned as counsel for the trust, allegedly later threatened to investigate her for defaming Mozenter.
Additionally, the petition targets Mozenter transferring property that allegedly should've been left to Jane Buffett personally to the estate. This includes properties in New York, Florida and St. Barthélemy island.
Mozenter didn't immediately respond to requests for comment.
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