Walt
Disney’s grandson, Bradford Lund, filed a civil rights lawsuit Thursday
against a judge who Lund says violated his constitutional rights as
part of a long-running legal battle over a $200 million inheritance.
According
to the lawsuit, Lund’s estranged family members “alleged that he was
incapacitated and needed a guardianship and conservatorship” as their
way of keeping him from receiving his half of the $400 million left to
him and his sister. After a seven-year legal battle in Arizona led to a
10-day day trial, Lund says he was victorious “in all respects and was
found to have capacity, resulting in a dismissal of that case.”
Lund’s
estranged family appealed but an appellate court affirmed the decision.
Walt Disney’s grandson and his estranged family appeared to be close to
a settlement last year but Los Angeles Superior Court Judge David Cowan
did not approve the settlement agreement and instead, on Sept. 27,
2019, appointed a guardian over Lund.
This order was not appealable under California law.
“The
decision by Judge Cowan to appoint a (guardian) without a hearing,” the
new lawsuit states, “and utterly ignoring constitutional requirements
of due process of law is all too reminiscent of a perspective where
facts do not matter but alternative facts do, where the constitution
does not matter and where the rule of law is set aside and replaced by
the rule of subjective, fact-free decision-making.”
Lund
believes his incompetence needs to be proven, not the other way around,
and argues, “Judge Cowan reversed the burden of proof and required Mr.
Lund to prove that he was not incompetent.”
The federal lawsuit is seeking a declaratory judgment saying Judge Cowan violated Lund’s constitutional rights.
Full Article & Source:
Walt Disney’s Grandson Sues Judge in Battle Over $200 Million Inheritance
I am praying this is a successful lawsuit and the judge is held accountable.
ReplyDeleteI hope Brad's lawyer can call it what it is--the stealing of an inheritance for the personal gain of those lurking in the wings to profit. Horrible.
ReplyDeleteIsn't this a perfect case for supportive decision-making rather than a Draconian complete take-over of a person's assets and life? Anyone can see that money is the sole reason for keeping Brad in a guardianship which means he has no control over his life and rightful inheritance.
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