Legal

Paris Jackson slammed the two executors in charge of her late father Michael Jackson’s estate ... claiming they are bullying her for asking questions about money spent, TMZ has learned.

Paris' claims come after the executors said Paris was “more interested in playing to the media than” working out any issues. According to court docs, obtained by TMZ, Paris and her legal team say the executors, John Branca and John McClain, are filing court documents that “mock and belittle” Michael’s only daughter. For their part, Branca and McClain claim Paris and her legal team are spreading incorrect information about the case to the press.

The executors claim that while Paris may claim she doesn't want the case in the press, her media team tried to spin the court's "rather routine actions" at a recent hearing "as some sort of blockbuster ruling by the court in favor of Paris."

As TMZ previously reported, Paris and the executors have been going back and forth about payments made to third-party law firms who worked for the estate ... with Paris questioning the process for handing out huge bonuses and fees.

Branca and McClain have been arguing that their work turned the estate from insolvent to worth billions. They also argue Paris has benefited greatly from their hard work.

Sophia Hutchins' inner circle isn't shocked by Caitlyn Jenner claiming her late friend and former manager owed her nearly half a million dollars ... 'cause we're told Sophia had beef with her own family over finances.

Sources familiar with the situation tell TMZ ... Sophia had issues with her relatives over her spending habits long before she became indebted to Caitlyn.

We’re told Sophia was raised by her paternal grandmother, Regina, who was very generous ... footing the bill for Sophia’s private schooling and sending her money for college expenses when she attended Pepperdine University in Malibu.

Our sources say Grandma Regina also paid for Sophia’s flights for travel and debate trips ... and took care of Sophia's "hefty" credit card bills.

Bill Gates is going to testify in the congressional Jeffrey Epstein investigation, TMZ has learned.

Congressman Suhas Subramanyam (D-Va.), who sits on the House Oversight Committee, tells TMZ ... the former Microsoft boss will sit for a transcribed interview before the Committee on June 10.

Suhas tells us ... the Committee plans to grill Gates about his ties to Epstein, what (if anything) he knew about Epstein's crimes, whether people were ever trafficked to him, why his picture showed up in the files, and why he would choose to associate himself with someone who had committed these crimes.

Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie are going back and forth in court about when the trial will begin in their bitter legal battle ... with Brad claiming he doesn't want to delay too long, saying he would LOVE to start using his mega-mansion in France once again -- TMZ has learned.

According to court docs, obtained by TMZ, the exes can’t agree on the start date for their trial in the fight over the French winery Chateau Miraval, which they purchased together while married.

Brad sued Angelina, claiming she sold her stake in the winery without his permission ... while Angelina said she didn’t need him to sign off on the deal after her negotiations with him broke down.

Taylor Frankie Paul is getting her day in court ... going toe-to-toe with her ex Dakota Mortensen in a protection hearing ... and a judge is giving Taylor supervised parent time with their two-year-old son.

The judge's ruling followed an hours-long hearing in Utah ... and he says Taylor can see her son for up to 8 hours of supervised parent time each week. The judge says this is a temporary custody arrangement for 3 weeks and 2 days until the next court hearing on April 30. Taylor can break up the 8 hours with her kid into 2-hour or 3-hour increments.

Dakota previously filed a temporary restraining order against TFP and is asking the court to extend the protective order into a long-term one, as authorities investigate accusations of domestic violence, which Dakota brought against Taylor.

Remember ... the temporary protective order meant that Taylor also temporarily lost custody of the couple's 2-year-old son, Ever.

11:14 AM PT -- In her TRO filing, Taylor Frankie Paul is finally going deep into the gritty details about her side of the domestic violence drama between her and her ex Dakota Mortensen. She says Dakota displayed signs of crazy jealousy -- stalking her, assaulting her, and becoming "increasingly possessive" ahead of her debut on "The Bachelorette." According to TFP, Dakota got her initials tattooed on the inside of his lip -- something she says she found out about leading up to their February altercation.

And while Dakota is accusing TFP of assaulting him in that incident, she says he actually assaulted her in that confrontation in February. Taylor accuses Dakota of slamming her head against the dashboard of his car while in Taylor's driveway.

Even wilder ... Taylor says he asked her for sex right after. According to Taylor, after she denied his advances, Dakota called the police on her.

Taylor Frankie Paul is going on the offensive ... the reality star has just filed a temporary restraining order against her ex Dakota Mortensen, TMZ has learned.

The filing, obtained by TMZ, comes before the estranged couple's court hearing today concerning a protective order that was granted to Dakota against Taylor.

Taylor Frankie Paul submitted an avalanche of evidence to fight Dakota Mortensen's plea for a restraining order against her, TMZ has learned.

According to court docs, obtained by TMZ, Taylor and her legal team filed a bunch of photos purportedly showing injuries after an alleged May 2025 assault ... and bruises on her forehead and knee from an alleged assault on February 23, 2026. 

Other evidence includes "possessive texts" from Dakota and a screenshot of Dakota's request for sex after the February 23, 2026, incident ... the texts predate the incident. The photos of the bruising and the screenshot of the request for sex came after.

As TMZ first reported, Taylor and Dakota are facing off in court later today. Earlier this morning, the Mormon Wives star filed her own request for a protective order against Dakota. 

Michael Jackson’s estate continues to provide for the late pop star’s kids, including dropping thousands on tuition for his oldest son and tens of thousands for his daughter Paris’ home improvements ... this according to new legal docs filed by the estate.

TMZ obtained the 2022 accounting report submitted by John Branca and John McClain, the two executors who run Michael’s estate.

The executors said 2022 was “another banner year for the estate.” Branca and McClain pointed out the estate launched "MJ: The Musical" on Broadway, which made a ton of money and received acclaim.

The Michael Jackson estate reportedly shelled out millions to cut any mention of child molestation accusations in the end of "Michael" ... and because of it, they now own a stake in the film.

The late singer's estate is estimated to have coughed up between $10M and $15M to complete "necessary" reshoots for the movie, according to Variety.

The publication reports the biopic was originally supposed to explore the impact that child molestation accusations had on Jackson's life ... but now there's not even a mention of the accusations, because of a clause in a settlement with one of Jackson's accusers. Jordan Chandler reportedly barred the mention of him in any movie.

Timothy Busfield's accusers say he touched their kids inappropriately on set ... but the actor-director's lawyer says they're bloodthirsty scammers -- out for either money or revenge.

Busfield's civil attorney, Larry Stein, told NewsNation on Monday that the children's parents have been labeled by the Department of Justice as scammers, and he says they coerced their children to lie about the accusations to get back at Busfield.

Remember ... the kids' father is a disbarred lawyer who reportedly did jail time for cheating people out of millions of dollars -- meanwhile, Stein says the mother got caught passing bad checks at Las Vegas casinos.

Paris Jackson's not letting the drama with her dad Michael's estate get her down ... visiting a Beverly Hills salon for some much-needed self-care.

Michael Jackson's middle child stepped out for a relaxing afternoon on Monday ... rocking a plaid shirt over a crop top and a pair of booty shorts.

She added cowboy boots to the ensemble ... and christened herself a "Cowboy" with an orange hat that featured the word prominently in white script.

Nancy Matayer Bowen and her husband -- who's been arrested, accused of murdering her -- were locked in a legal battle with their homeowners association months before the Coral Springs, Florida vice mayor was slain, TMZ has learned.

According to court docs obtained by TMZ, Nancy and Stephen were sued in November 2025 by their homeowners association.

The HOA claimed the couple defaulted on certain fees and asked for permission to foreclose on the home to collect.

Late pop star Aaron Carter’s mom Jane Schenck's fight with his ex-fiancée Melanie Martin over his estate was shut down in court, TMZ has learned. 

According to court docs obtained by TMZ, a Los Angeles County Superior Court judge denied Jane’s effort to block the estate from closing ... finding the estate was insolvent and ordering the distribution of its non-cash assets to Melanie. 

Jane believed the trustee in charge had undervalued the value of Aaron’s royalties. She also alleged Melanie had made “illegal withdrawals” from Aaron’s accounts totaling $24,530. 

Former WWE champion Alberto del Rio appears to be in legal trouble down in Mexico, where he allegedly physically assaulted his wife.

Alberto was detained by law enforcement in San Luis Potosí, a large Mexican state, according to multiple reports Monday.

The detainment was reportedly the result of a complaint filed by Alberto's wife, who alleged he beat her.

Caitlyn Jenner has filed a hefty creditor's claim against the estate of her late friend and former manager, Sophia Hutchins -- alleging she's owed nearly half a million dollars.

According to legal docs, obtained by TMZ, Jenner claims Hutchins racked up $439,095.88 in unpaid expenses before her death, including credit card charges, cash advances, shopping, and her portion of some shared legal fees.

The docs detail where the money allegedly went, including spending at companies like Shopify, eBay, 1stdibs, and other online retailers.