Prince estate legal battle surrounding assets resolved after six years

The legal battle surrounding assets from Prince’s estate has reportedly been resolved after six years.

According to Billboard, a Minnesota judge signed off on an agreement on Monday (1st August), which will split Prince’s assets between his heirs, their advisors, and the management company Primary Wave.

The late icon died aged 57 in April 2016 from a fentanyl overdose at his Paisley Park home outside Minneapolis. With no spouse or children, his estate passed to his six half-siblings. Three of them sold shares to Primary Wave, while three others kept hold of their stakes and partnered with advisors L. Londell McMillan and Charles Spicer. In and out of court for the past six years, no one has been able to agree on how to split the assets until now.

“Prince was an iconic superstar and this transfer out of the court’s jurisdiction puts in place professional, skilled management,” Primary Wave said in a statement to Billboard. “When we announced our acquisition of the additional expectancy interests in the estate last year bringing our ownership interest to 50%, our goal was to protect and grow Prince’s incomparable legacy. With the distribution of estate assets, we look forward to a strong and productive working relationship.”

“I represented Prince for over 13 years and we led with innovation to reform the music industry—we hope to do the same with his amazing assets and catalog, from his music, film content, exhibits, merchandise, Paisly Park events, branded products and more,” McMillan added in its own statement. “It is a historical and very exciting time. Prince is almost free to rest now.”

Throughout the legal proceedings, several posthumous or archival Prince releases have been distributed by different label partners. A previously unreleased 1987 album by Prince was given its first release via Third Man Records earlier this year.

In other Prince news, a 3D interactive exhibition called Prince: The Immersive Experience is currently open in Chicago’s Magnificent Mile district. The multisensory project celebrating the late pop icon was produced by experiential exhibition company Superfly in collaboration with the Prince Estate.