In a Year of Vetoes – Arizona Legislature and Governor Agree on Need
for Sweeping Court Reforms with Unanimous Votes in Both Chambers
PHOENIX--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Today,
Arizona Governor Katie Hobbs signed into law SB1291, drastically
elevating the rights of citizens in guardianship and conservatorship in
historic reform for an area of civil law that has long been noted for
abuse. Governor Hobbs had previously signed SB1038, establishing a
Probate Advisory Panel. Both bills passed out of the Legislature with
unanimous support in both the House and Senate, which together bring
long-needed reform and accountability to probate courts in Arizona.
The grassroots effort was led by Sherry Lund, who was motivated to act
after her family endured over a decade of emotionally devastating and
extremely costly litigation in two states to prove her stepson, the
grandson of Walt Disney, was competent and not in need of a guardian or
conservator. Her experiences led her to found 5-14 Protecting Liberty, a
grassroots organization dedicated to probate reform.
“The amount of money that was demanded to be paid by our family through
the legal action to protect our son’s rightful inheritance was nothing
short of extortion. Across our nation the courts, attorneys, and
fiduciaries have developed a pattern and practice of abuse that protects
their sources of financial gain, pulling it from private citizens and
into their pockets. After what happened to our family, I could not sit
by and watch as other Americans are abused by the system that was
designed to protect them,” said Mrs. Lund.
Both bills were sponsored by Senator John Kavanagh R-Fountain Hills, who
stated in public testimony that probate reform is “a very important
issue” and spent hours in stakeholder meetings to develop the bill
language that would ensure the rights of individuals are not lost
unnecessarily in Arizona courts. Rep. Alex Kolodin R-Scottsdale, who
sponsored the striker amendment that added stronger protections for
Arizona citizens, called SB1291 “a phenomenal bill” and was instrumental
in seeing it passed. By Arizona law, the bills will become effective
90-days after Sine Die of the Arizona Legislature. Mrs. Lund in
expressing her gratitude said, “Immense thanks are due to Sen. John
Kavanagh for his efforts at getting both of these bills through the
legislature, to Rep. Alex Kolodin for his strong legal language and
commitment to the Constitution, and to Governor Katie Hobbs who
recognized the need for reform and signed SB291 and SB1038 into law.”
Asked about her next plans, Mrs. Lund replied, “I’m not stopping. There
is much more to do in Arizona to protect children and families.
Nationally, I won’t stop until every state is upholding the Constitution
in probate matters. Our case led me to meet so many other families,
from around the country, with horror stories that cannot be ignored. I
have the ability to affect positive change and am determined to do so.”
About 5-14 Protecting Liberty: Founded by Sherry Lund,
5-14 Protecting Liberty is a grassroots coalition of citizens who have
experienced abuse, separation from loved ones, the loss of individual
liberty, personal property and finances in the probate system. 5-14
Protecting Liberty is dedicated to protecting the rights of all.
Contacts
Kim Owens
Gordon C. James Public Relations
602-689-9449
kowens@gcjpr.com
Being tied to something as well-known as “Disney” provides for
interesting conversations. Mention “probate court” and eyes glaze over.
My stepson, Brad Disney Lund, the grandson of Walt Disney, and our
family have been in protracted probate cases for more than 13 years.
Brad won his Arizona case, our family vindicated of any wrongdoing, but
the people we met and what we learned about the probate system in the
United States revealed a nightmare worse than any evil portrayed in
fantasy. (Deposit Photos)
Being connected to something as well-known as “Disney” provides for
interesting conversations. Mention “probate court” and eyes glaze over.
The connection to one has made me all too familiar with the other. My
stepson, Brad Disney Lund, the grandson of Walt Disney, and our family
have been in protracted probate cases for over 13 years. Brad won his
Arizona case, our family vindicated of any wrongdoing, but the people we
met and what we learned about the probate system in our country
revealed a nightmare worse than any evil portrayed in fantasy. The Ninth
Circuit Court of Appeals called the probate court in our case “The Most
Unhappy Place on Earth.”
These real-life experiences invoke questions of how this is even
legal in America. When compared, the pattern of practice across the
country becomes obvious. The Department of Justice has years of
documented physical, psychological, and sexual abuse, physical
abandonment, and financial exploitation from probate actions. More
accounts are found with a simple internet search.
People being denied due process, stripped of every dime they saved,
robbed of pensions, restricted of precious time with loved ones, drugged
and left to develop bedsores, pushed into declining health ultimately
to die penniless and often alone, motivated me to seek change. Which is
why two probate reform bills, SB1291 and SB1038, are in our Legislature
this session. Both bills have garnered immense bipartisan support, are
vitally important and must become law.
Arizona law allows for a simple medical evaluation, it could be by a
registered nurse or physician assistant, to place someone under a court
order. There is no requirement for an evaluation from your long-time
personal physician, or someone specifically trained in detecting mental
and physical incapacity to perform this evaluation that will remove you
of every right you ever had. A stranger is able to determine if a person
stands to lose their civil rights and be reclassified as a “ward” in a
court action where limited evidence is required.
Enter the dystopian reality of families legally
prevented from seeing loved ones, sedation to keep the ward “calm,”
liquidation of assets and personal belongings, a likely change of
residence to fit the needs of the guardian who now bills the ward for
every aspect of care, for example $25 to open and $25 to read each piece
of mail – even junk mail. The ward loses the right to vote, to drive,
to see whomever they choose, to live where they choose, the ability to
choose their own doctor and make healthcare decisions. Essentially, all
individual decision-making is forfeited and given to the guardian, a
stranger, appointed by the courts in most cases.
When a guardian is appointed, it usually means that a conservator
over their estate is also appointed. Probate does not require great
wealth or being elderly. Owning your home, having a 401K or IRA, other
assets, Social Security or pension will do. It can start with getting
sick or having an injury with an unexpected hospitalization, a bank
account problem, or a family squabble over who takes care of someone, or
who gets the house and remaining retirement savings after mom and dad
are gone.
These events trigger the idea that there is a need for an
intervention in the care or financial management of the individual,
which ushers in the court-appointed attorneys, fiduciaries and
guardians. With relatively minimal effort, an individual’s civil rights
are removed, their life no longer under their control. Then there is the
money that is filtered through probate cases. So much money.
The money running through the probate system makes
it ripe for corruption. The United States is estimated to have 1.3
million active probate cases, including over $50 billion under
management, with a staggering $16.9 billion drained from retirement
accounts, family trusts, and lifetime savings of Baby Boomers alone. In
many cases it is the court-appointed players receiving these funds,
nicknamed “probate pirates” due to their ease at liquidating assets
while staying in the gray zone of legality. One recent article said the
current probate system “… irreparably damages entire generations of
innocent families.”
Not surprisingly, the abusers in the system are trying hard to push
back on SB1291 and SB1038 by lobbying to water down these bills. They
should not be allowed to deny the Constitutional protections against
what is happening in the probate courts to protect their status quo.
Every citizen should be concerned that our rights are so easily
eliminated and all that we hold dear and planned for, wiped away. It is
incumbent on the Arizona Legislature to pass and Gov. Katie Hobbs to
sign into law, SB1291 and SB1038.
Sherry Lund of Paradise Valley is the founder of Protecting
Liberty 5-14, a grassroots organization dedicated to protecting the
rights guaranteed in the 5th and 14th Amendments and has spent over a
decade advocating nationwide for victims of probate abuse.
That net worth is poised to grow as the
company becomes a major streaming TV player. After announcing streaming
plans in a December Investor Day, its market value increased by $32 billion.
The Disney family's fortune isn't known, but the family owns less than 3% of the company, according to Walt Disney's grand-nephew, Roy P.
Two of Walt Disney's grandchildren became embroiled in a feud over their trust funds.
Most of the Disney family members have stayed out of the business and have collectively donated millions to charity.
The Walt Disney Company
has come a long way since it was founded by brothers Walt and Roy O.
Disney nearly a century ago. What began as a cartoon studio is now a
media powerhouse, complete with amusement parks and properties.
But
for all its success, the family behind "The Happiest Place on Earth"
has largely stayed out of the limelight and the business. While it's not
known just how much the family is worth, GOBankingRates estimated the company's net worth to be $130 billion. Roy O.'s grandson, Roy P., previously said
the family owns less than 3% of the company, but assuming it is about
that amount would put their fortune around $3.9 billion (not counting
any investments in addition to Disney holdings).
But it's likely
the company's net worth — and thus the family's net worth — will
continue to grow as Disney positions itself as a major player in streaming television. The company announced in a 2020 December Investor Day that it's rolling out dozens of movies and
streaming TV shows from its studio and its Marvel, Star Wars, and Pixar subsidiaries and expects to triple subscribers for its Disney Plus streaming service by 2024. The announcement sent Disney's market value up by $32 billion as shares jumped as much as 12%.
From a family-trust-fund feud to generous philanthropic endeavors, here's a look at the three generations of the Disney family. The family did not respond to a request for comment from Business Insider.
Disney
cofounder Walt Disney wanted to be a cartoonist since high school,
taking extracurricular art classes at the Chicago Academy of Fine Arts.
General Photographic Agency/Getty Images
He later worked at a film ad
company in Missouri, where he learned animation and went on to form his
first animation studio, Laugh-O-Grams, according to the Walt Disney website.
But a bad business deal led to the downfall of the studio: A small
theatrical company called Pictorial Clubs reportedly offered
Laugh-O-Gram $11,000 for six small films, but it only gave Disney a $100
down payment before Pictoral went bankrupt.
Walt
then left for Hollywood. In 1923, he cofounded the Disney Brothers
Cartoon Studio, which became Walt Disney Studio, with his older brother,
Roy O. Disney. The two had a close relationship: Walt controlled the
creative aspects of the company, while Roy ran the business side.
Five
years later, "Steamboat Willy" was the first media production to debut
Mickey Mouse. In 1937, Disney's first feature-length film, "Snow White
and the Seven Dwarfs," debuted and became a box office hit, taking the
company from being in debt to being worth millions of dollars.
By the late 1950s, Walt had created a family entertainment world complete with movies, TV shows, and an amusement park.
Getty Images
In 1953, Walt self-funded a
private company, WED Enterprises — now known as Walt Disney Imagineering
and opened Disneyland two years later. Roughly a decade later, in 1964,
Walt and Roy kicked off the development of Walt Disney World in
Florida.
That same year, Walt launched one of the most important projects of his career, according to the Walt Disney website: "Mary Poppins," which received 12 Academy Award nominations.
Today,
Disney is one of the biggest media companies in the world, with an
estimated net worth of nearly $130 billion. It was named the No. 1
best-regarded company in 2018 by Forbes.
Associated Press
GOBankingRates'
Sean Dennison evaluated the company's net worth to be $130 billion
based on its revenue and profits from the past three years. In 2019
alone, Disney was on the upswing. It announced a new streaming service, Disney+, which caused Disney shares to hit a record high, Arjun Reddy of Business Insider reported.
In March 2019, Disney acquired Fox's entertainment business for $71 billion as part of its plan to compete with technology companies like Amazon and
Netflix. It got a controlling stake in streaming service
Hulu in the process. It was Disney's 23rd acquisition.
Overall, Disney has four key business segments, according to Forbes: media networks, parks and resorts, studio entertainment, and consumer products and interactive media.
It's
unknown how much the Disney family is worth today, but Walt has been
described as a "family man" who tried to provide a normal life for his
family.
Diane, Walt, Lillian, and Sharon.
PA Images/Getty Images
In 1925,
Walt married Lillian Bounds, a studio inker. Eight years later, Lillian
gave birth to Diane, and the couple later adopted their daughter Sharon
as an infant. Walt drove the girls to school every day and barely
brought his work home.
"We weren't raised with the idea that this is a great man who is doing things that no one else had ever done," Sharon had said. "He was Daddy. He was a man who went to work every morning and came home every night."
Walt and Lillian had two main residences, both in California.
Walt Disney's Palm Springs home.
Google Maps
Their main residence was an estate in Los Angeles' Holmby Hills, worth $8.5 million before being sold in 1998. A subsequent owner made renovations that put its value at $90 million.
They also owned a 2,433-square-foot weekend retreat in Palm Springs, up for sale at nearly $900,000 in 2016.
Walt's
older daughter, Diane, married Ronald Miller in 1954 and had seven
children, who were reportedly relatively quiet with their side of the
family fortune.
Diane Miller.
David Butow/Getty Images
Diane
raised her children — Chris, Joanna, Tamara, Jennifer, Walt, Ron Jr.,
and Patrick — the same way she was raised, trying to give them a typical
life. Tamara previously told People
that their mother took a "hands-on approach to raising children,"
forgoing a nanny and taking them to tutors and soccer practice.
"We ... lived a very simple, traditional family life," Chris previously said in an interview.
"So when people would confront us with 'your grandpa is Walt Disney,'
it seemed like an odd affront to us," even though, he added, "we knew
grandpa was world-renowned."
"Our parents and grandparents did a
beautiful job of protecting us," Jennifer said in the same interview.
"We really had such a normal life. They all made sure of it."
Diane died in 2013 at age 79. She was Walt's last surviving child.
Walt's
younger daughter, Sharon, adopted one child, Victoria, with her first
husband, Robert Brown. She then had twins, Brad and Michelle, with her
second husband, Bill Lund.
Walt Disney, Sharon Disney, and Robert Brown.
Bettmann/Getty Images
Like her sister, Sharon stayed out of the limelight and tried to protect her kids from Disney fame, reported Eriq Gardner of The Hollywood Reporter. Brad told Gardner he led a "very normal life." Sharon died from breast cancer in 1993 at age 56.
Michelle has never had a job and owns three homes, spending a lot of time in Newport Beach, California, according to Gardner.
Victoria
was said to live quite lavishly, splurging on $5,000-a-night suites at
the Royal Palms apartment homes in Las Vegas, Gardner wrote: "She once
went on a Disney cruise ship and destroyed her suite in such spectacular
fashion that Eisner, then-CEO of the company, had to call the trustees
and make them pay for the damages. The family staged numerous
interventions, to no avail."
Victoria's share of the family fortune was added to Brad's and Michelle's after she died in 2002 from health complications, Michael Lyons of National Post reported.
Sharon's twins later became embroiled in a multiple-year feud over their $400 million trust fund.
Michelle Lund, Walt Disney's granddaughter.
Jason LaVeris/Getty Images
The inheritance was supposed to be distributed in annual payments and lump sums at five-year intervals at ages 35, 40, and 45, reported Gardner. However, the trustees disbursed the payments to Michelle, but withheld Brad's.
Michelle
and the trustees argued that Brad wasn't capable of managing his share
because of a "chronic cognitive disability" and that Bill, their father,
was taking advantage of this to gain money, according to NBC News.
Bill
argued that the trustees were manipulating his daughter Michelle.
According to Gardner, he was previously a trustee but resigned after an
allegation that he used trust money to gain more than $3 million in
kickbacks from a real-estate deal. He reportedly agreed to an annual
settlement of $500,000.
While Michelle reportedly suffered from
drug addiction and had a brain aneurysm that "left her with uncertain
mental abilities," the trustees agreed with her about her brother,
Gardner wrote. And the court ended up ruling in favor of the trustees,
continuing to withhold Brad's payments while paying out Michelle's.
On
the other side of the family, Roy O. and wife, Edna Francis, gave birth
to Roy E. Disney in 1930, who later became a senior executive for The
Walt Disney Company.
Roy E. Disney.
Jim Smeal/Getty Images
Roy E. had four children of his own: Susan, Roy P., Tim, and Abigail.
About
the time Michael Eisner became CEO of Disney, in the 1980s, and revived
the company, Disney stocks increased and the family's net worth
skyrocketed to 50 times what it was when Roy E.'s children were growing
up, Abigail told Sarah McVeigh of The Cut.
Roy E.'s daughter Abigail started feeling uneasy about her family's wealth by the time she reached her 20s.
Jemal Countess/Getty Images
In 2019, Abigail told The Cut she
was embarrassed by her family's wealth, adding that it bred deep
self-doubt and an "inferiority complex around people who have actually
earned their money."
"We went from being comfortable, upper-middle-class people to suddenly my dad had a private jet," she said,
referring to the family's private 737. "That's when I feel that my dad
really lost his way in life. And that's why I feel hyperconscious about
what wealth does to people. I lived in one family as a child, and then I
didn't even recognize the family as I got older."
She's taught her four children that
"money is morally neutral," she said. "It does not, in and of itself,
make you a bad person. It also does not, in and of itself, makes you a
good person. You are who you are and the least important thing about you
is what you have."
Abigail is a documentary filmmaker and founded Fork Films, which focuses on international social issues. She added that the fortune she inherited would have made her a billionaire if she wanted to be one, and that she would outlaw private jets if she could.
And in a 25-tweet thread
in April, Abigail slammed Disney's decision to furlough its 43,000
employees without first canceling plans to pay shareholder bonuses and
executive bonuses, reported Business Insider's Taylor Nicole Rogers. Top executives have taken pay cuts to conserve the company's cash during the crisis, but their potential to still earn bonuses is "the REAL outrage," Disney tweeted.
Abigail's
brother, Roy P., said in an interview that by 1960, Walt and Roy O.
owned about 20% of the company. Today, the family owns less than 3% of
the company.
Tim, Abigail, and Susan.
Jeff Kravitz/Getty Images
His
brother, Tim, is a screenwriter with a hefty real-estate portfolio. Tim
reportedly bought Kristen Wiig's Los Angeles house for $5.2 million,
according to Yolanda's Little Black Book.
He also has a renovated Spanish estate in Los Feliz, which he bought
for $6.4 million, and a weekend retreat in Joshua Tree. He previously
sold a Hancock Park property for $4.45 million.
Their sister,
Susan, also makes real estate moves: She previously owned a
4,883-square-foot beachfront house in Malibu, which she sold for $18
million after several price cuts, reported Mark David for Variety. She also runs the restaurant The Bel-Air, where grilled lamb chops go for $38.
While
Walt and Roy O. kept their families in harmony, the two families were
reportedly never close and drew even further apart after Roy O.'s death
in 1971.
Walt and Roy O.
Bettmann/Getty Images
Diane's husband and Walt's son-in-law, Ron, became CEO of Disney in the early 1980s. In 1984, Roy E. replaced him with Eisner, according to People. The move reportedly deepened the family divide, but the two families later patched things up.
Roy
E. was the only heir to get involved in the family business, which Walt
tried to steer his children and grandchildren away from, according to Gardner.
While Diane didn't get involved in corporate matters, she reportedly worked the hardest to preserve Walt's legacy, creating the Walt Disney Family Museum.
Most
of the Disney family has shied away from corporate affairs, instead
displaying their wealth and power philanthropically, according to
Gardner.
Lillian and Walt Disney.
Gene Lester/Getty Images
Disney family members — and the company itself — have donated millions to charity.
Lillian donated $274 million for a new concert hall in Los Angeles, according to The New York Times.
Sharon was a trustee for CalArts, and got involved with the Marianne
Frostig Center of Educational Therapy and the Curtis School Foundation, according to The Los Angeles Times. Her family has reportedly contributed nearly $100 million toward building Disney Hall on Bunker Hill.
According to Gardner,
the Lund family is committed to the Sharon Disney Lund Foundation,
donating money to cancer research and visiting the scientists. The
Foundation has also donated $1 million to a nonprofit arts organization for teens.
So far, Abigail has donated about $70 million and plans to keep "giving a lot of money away" until her death, she told The Cut. She and her husband, Pierre Hauser, cofounded the Daphne Foundation, which supports programs to end poverty in New York City.
The Disney Conservation Fund
has also given out hundreds of grants worth $75 million toward wildlife
organizations like The International Fund for Animal Welfare and The
African People & Wildlife Fund.
A lawsuit filed by the grandson of Walt Disney over the disposition
of land in Teton County should be decided in California, Wyoming’s
Supreme Court has ruled.
The court on Wednesday turned down Brad Lund in his attempt to have a
lawsuit over the sale of a plot of land known as Eagle South Fork Ranch
near Wilson heard in Teton County.
Justices unanimously upheld a state district court’s ruling that
justice would be better served if Lund’s challenge was heard in a
California court rather than one in Wyoming.
“The district court did not abuse its discretion in concluding that
the California court was an available and adequate alternate forum,”
said the ruling written by Chief Justice Kate Fox.
The ruling is the latest in a long series of legal battles between
Lund, his sister Michelle Lund and the trustees for both of the trusts
maintained for the two.
Brad and Michelle Lund are the children of Sharon Disney-Lund, the daughter of Walt Disney.
Their father bought the 110-acre ranch and after their mother’s
death, the ranch was placed in residuary trusts for the two children,
with each trust owning 50% of the land.
According to the ruling, since 2009, Brad Lund and the trustees have
been involved in a lawsuit in California probate court over numerous
elements of the trust, including ways assets should be divided between
the trusts of Brad and Michelle.
In 2019, trustees agreed to let Bradford buy his sister’s interest in
the Eagle South Fork Ranch for $9.7 million rather than sell the land
to an outside party.
In September 2020, the trustees announced they had received an offer
of $35 million for the property, which they intended to accept. Michelle
withdrew her consent to her brother’s purchase of the land.
Brad then filed a complaint against his sister and the trustees in
state district court in Teton County, saying they breached the terms of
an agreement for the purchase of the land.
The trustees and Michelle asked that the lawsuit be dismissed because
all of the other legal actions surrounding the trusts were taking part
in California.
The state district court granted the request and Brad challenged it
to the Wyoming Supreme Court, saying the action involved a Wyoming
property, so it made sense to hear the challenge in Wyoming.
But the Supreme Court which agreed it made more sense to pursue legal
action in California because it was actually part of a larger probate
case in that state.
“The California court has an extensive history with these parties and
their trust disputes, and the district court reasonably concluded that
the more efficient course was to have that court preside over this
dispute as well,” the ruling said.
In addition, all of the parties, witnesses and evidence in the case are located outside of Wyoming, the ruling said.
In court papers, the 1992 Co-Trustees request justice and accuse both
FRTC and MSK of "false and highly insulting" rhetoric and "abusive use
of the courts"
News provided by
Lanny Davis
Dec 15, 2021, 15:05 ET
LOS ANGELES, Dec. 15, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- The Los Angeles County Superior Court (Probate) Judge Hon. Daniel Juarez, on December 3, 2021,
granted the 1992 Co-Trustees' Motion to Lift Stay which will finally
provide a hearing on the distribution of personal 1992 Trust assets back
to Bradford Lund.
In 1992, Bradford Lund, the grandson of Walt Disney,
established a trust consisting of his own Disney stock. The 1992 Trust
was to hold the Disney stock until Lund reached 45 years of age in
June, 2015. However, because of procedural stays, distribution of the
assets in the 1992 Trust has not occurred. The 1992 Trust settled with
Lund's twin sister, Michelle, and she agreed to dismiss her petition
regarding that trust and to not object to any distribution of assets.
Still, the 1992 Trust assets were kept from Lund. The main roadblock:
FRTC. As stated in the court papers. "It would be a grave injustice to
allow the Distribution Petition to continue to be stayed due to FRTC's
hostilities against Mr. Lund …." Judge Juarez lifted the stay on the
Distribution Petition and set a court date for February, 2022.
FRTC was removed as the Trustee of the 1992 Trust in 2014. However,
FRTC, and their attorneys at Mitchell Silberberg & Knupp, who have
no standing whatsoever to interfere, have thwarted the distribution of
Lund's own personal assets back to him. In rejecting all of FRTC's
specious arguments, Judge Juarez granted the Motion from the bench.
As stated in Lund's court papers, "The Motion was brought for one reason only – Justice.
Justice in the form of the Co-Trustees getting Mr. Lund his own Disney
stock back to him. Disney stock that has been held hostage by a series
of stays of this case going back approximately six years." "FRTC has no
qualms in hiding its true intent – to hold captive all of Mr.
Lund's" personal assets in Disney stock "to use as its own personal
piggybank to pay for its outrageously large attorney's fees incurred in
the 92 Trust case."
At the oral argument, the lead attorney for FRTC, Hayward Kaiser, continued the false allegations and attacks on Mr. Lund, Sherry Lund, and his lead attorney, Sandra Slaton,
to no avail. Judge Juarez ruled from the bench and granted the motion,
finally providing Mr. Lund with his due process rights and scheduling a
hearing – that first step that will, hopefully, permit Lund to finally
get back his own personal assets that have been unjustly frozen by the
probate court for more than six years now.
The attorneys for the grandson of Walt Disney will argue their case
to block the sale of his family’s ranch in Teton County until his appeal
of a lower court’s decision on the issue can be heard in front of the
Wyoming Supreme Court on Wednesday.
The case involves Bradford Disney Lund’s appeal of a lower court’s
decision in January to dismiss his lawsuit challenging the sale of the
ranch near Wilson he owns with his sister. The ranch has been in the
family since Lund’s father, William Lund, purchased it more than 40
years ago.
Jackson attorney Chris Hawks told Cowboy State Daily on Tuesday that
the legal team expected to hear a decision from the Wyoming Supreme
Court within six months of the hearing, but that timeline could change.
“We’re arguing that Bradford Lund is one of the beneficial owners of
the ranch,” Lund attorney Sandra Slaton told Cowboy State Daily. “He has
a vested interest in that ranch. The trust legally owns the ranch, but
the trustees are supposed to do what is in the beneficiary’s best
interest.”
This appeal is the latest in Lund’s attempt to keep trustees from
selling the 110-acre Eagle South Fork ranch near Wilson against his
will.
The ranch has remained in residuary trusts for Lund and his sister following the death of their mother, Sharon Disney Lund.
“To keep the ranch means a lot to me,” Lund told Cowboy State Daily
on Tuesday. “It would be a very big loss for the family history to sell
that ranch.”
The trustees include L. Andrew Gifford, Robert L. Wilson, Douglas
Strode, and the financial trustee bank, the First Republic Trust Co.
Lund is challenging efforts by the trustees to sell the ranch to a
third party, saying it would be a violation of his mother’s wishes that
the ranch remain available for the use of her children.
Lund filed a lawsuit in state district court in Teton County to stop
the trustees from selling the ranch and seeking a court order to make
trustees comply with an earlier agreement to have the trust set up for
Lund’s benefit pay $9.79 million to buy the half of the ranch held in
the trust set up for his sister. The purchase would make Lund sole owner
of the ranch.
The trustees then moved to dismiss the case to California instead of
Wyoming because they claimed it was more convenient. The court granted
that motion and dismissed the case.
Immediately after the decision was announced in January, the trustees
announced they had an offer from a third party to buy the ranch. If
the ranch is sold, the trustees will each get a 2% commission, nearly
$700,000, from the sale.
Lund is appealing the state district court’s decision, saying the
judge abused his discretion when it found that “the private- and
public-interest factors strongly outweighed the deference owed to
(Lund’s) choice of forum,” according to a brief filed with the Supreme
Court.
In his appeal Lund insists that the decision on the sale of Eagle
South Fork be determined by Wyomingites that are close to the property
and understand its true value and worth.
The legal action is one of several involving Lund and the trustees.
He is suing in California courts over their management of five separate
trusts established for his benefit.
While Disneyland may be the “Happiest Place on Earth,” a California
probate court may be the opposite for a Disney heir, mused the U.S.
Court of Appeals in Lund v. Cowan (9th Cir. 2021) ___ F.3d ___.
Bradford Lund, a 50 year-old grandson of Walt Disney, sued the probate
judge who rejected a settlement agreement that would have allowed him to
access his approximately $200 million inheritance, and the federal
appellate court affirmed the dismissal of the suit.
The real drama has played out in the probate department of the Los
Angeles County Superior Court. Litigation there has spanned 15 years
with no FASTPASS or end in sight. Bradford’s story is unlike any Disney movie we have seen, but equally entertaining.
The Disney Family Cast of Characters
According to an article from the Hollywood Reporter,
Walt Disney and his wife Lillian had two children, a biological
daughter named Diane Disney Miller and an adopted daughter, Sharon
Disney Lund. Walt reportedly came up with the concept for Disneyland
while watching Diane and Sharon ride the merry-go-round at Griffith Park
in Los Angeles.
Sharon adopted her first daughter, Victoria, during her first
marriage. After her divorce, she married William “Bill” Lund, and they
had two children in 1970, twins Bradford and Michelle. Bradford and
Michelle each had learning disabilities growing up, according to the
Hollywood Reporter article. Bill described Bradford as having Down
syndrome and fetal alcohol syndrome. Michelle was diagnosed with
dyslexia.
Bill divorced Sharon in 1977 and eventually re-married Sherry Lund.
Sharon died in 1993. Victoria died without children in 2002 and the
balance of her trust was added to the principal of the trusts for
Bradford and Michelle.
When Is a Beneficiary “Mature” Enough to Inherit?
After Sharon died, three separate residuary trusts were created, one
for each of her children. Each trust had three individual trustees and
one corporate trustee. The trustees have changed over the years,
including Sherry Lund, Bill Lund, and Sharon’s older sister, Diane
Disney Miller.
The trustees were required to pay the beneficiaries a yearly income payment.
Separately, the trustees were allowed to make distributions to the
beneficiaries when each reached the ages of 35, 40, and 45. Each of
these birthday distributions was close to $30 million.
However, the trust instrument gave the trustees a discretionary
withholding power with respect to the birthday distributions. According
to the Hollywood Reporter article, the trust said that the trustees
“shall have the power to withhold any such distribution in the event
that the Trustees, in their discretion, determine that the child has not
theretofore demonstrated the maturity and financial ability to manage
and utilize such funds in a prudent and responsible manner.” In the
event of such a withholding, the trustees “may subsequently make such
distribution, or a portion thereof, if the Trustees later determine that
the child has met the required standard.”
“Frozen” Out of the Trusts
The discretionary distribution power has caused great strife.
In 2005, on Bradford and Michelle’s 35th birthday, the trustees
exercised the discretionary power for the first time. Bradford got
nothing. Michelle, according to Brad, received approximately $35
million.
In 2010, on Bradford and Michelle’s 40th birthday, the trustees again
exercised their discretionary power. Bradford got nothing and the
trustees refused to revisit the decision made at his 35th birthday.
Michelle received her share.
On both occasions, the trustees withheld distributions on the basis
that Bradford lacked the mental and financial abilities to manage such a
fortune.
Michelle received the distributions even though she reportedly had a
history of drug addiction and a brain aneurysm that left her with
uncertain mental abilities. Similarly, prior to her death, Victoria
received a distribution on her 35th birthday even though she had issues with heroin use and led an extremely lavish lifestyle.
According to the Hollywood Reporter article, Bradford’s lawyers
argued that the trustees were trying to take control of the children’s
inheritance altogether. For example, the trustees tried to seek a
conservatorship over Michelle, move her to a facility in Arizona, and
also sought to prolong the administration of the trust in order to get
paid hefty trustee fees. The probate court was not persuaded by these
arguments, and affirmed the unequal distributions to the twins.
Not surprisingly, in 2015, on Bradford and Michelle’s 45th birthday,
Bradford again was denied a birthday distribution. By then, his
distributions would have totaled an estimated $200 million.
Bradford challenged the trustees’ refusal to distribute his share.
The parties engaged in mediation and reached a global settlement
agreement. They then approached Judge David Cowan of the Los Angeles
Superior Court to approve the settlement.
During the settlement conference, Judge Cowan said, “Do I want to
give 200 million dollars, effectively to someone who may suffer, on some
level, from Down syndrome? The answer is no.” The judge rejected the
settlement and appointed a guardian ad litem, without holding a hearing,
to look out for Bradford’s interests.
Bradford initiated a federal lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for
the Central District of California. He claimed that Judge Cowan violated
his rights, including those under the Americans with Disabilities Act.
The district court dismissed the complaint, and the Ninth Circuit
affirmed the dismissal because Judge Cowan could not be liable under the
doctrines of sovereign and judicial immunity.
A YouTube recording of the Ninth Circuit argument, which we unofficially rate as “G,” can be seen here.
In its opinion, the Ninth Circuit did “find Judge Cowan’s comment
troubling. That someone has Down syndrome does not necessarily preclude
the ability to manage one’s own financial affairs. In any event, the
record suggests that Lund does not have Down syndrome. But judicial
immunity shields even incorrect or inappropriate statements if they were
made during the performance of a judge’s official duties.”
Back to Probate Court
With the loss of his appeal to the Ninth Circuit, Bradford finds
himself once again in probate court, hoping to get his hands on his $200
million inheritance. His “California Adventure” continues.
The question remains whether Bradford has the mental capacity and the
maturity to manage his $200 million fortune. An Arizona court found
that Lund is “not incapacitated” and a California court determined that
he has capacity to choose new trustees. There is also DNA evidence he does not have Down syndrome and evidence that Bradford held several jobs, suggesting that he has the capacity to handle the fortune like his sister, Michelle.
Depending on the positions taken by the trustees and the probate
court, Bradford might receive substantial distributions in the future.
Bradford has already taken steps to draw more attention to abusive fiduciary relationships, by writing to the House Judiciary Committee to investigate corrupt fiduciaries for depriving beneficiaries of due process.
As the probate battle continues, let’s hope that Bradford gets some
time away from the “Unhappiest Place on Earth” to enjoy his
grandfather’s famous theme park or catch his favorite Disney film.
