18/06/2018
The battle over George Michael’s estate is continuing with Kenny Goss, the late singer’s ex partner, making a claim on his fortune.
Mr Goss, who was with George for 15 years, is believed to be mounting a legal challenge to his Will on the basis that he supported the Careless Whisper singer through his most unsettled years.
The news follows recent reports about George’s partner, Fadi Fawaz refusing to move out of one of George’s London homes, preventing the singer’s family from concluding the probateprocess.
Although George is believed to have left his money and properties to his sisters, his Willcan’t be carried out until probate has been granted and that can’t be settled until all assets within his estate have been accounted for. While Fadi remains in the Regent’s Park property, probate can’t be finalised.
Until then, the only people who have access to the contents of the Will are George’s solicitor, the executor of the Will (this could be the solicitor or a person elected by George) and named beneficiaries.
The question some people are asking is: do Wills stand for anything if they can be contested? While it’s a complex area of the law, the simple answer is yes.
Anyone can contest a Will, however, it can be an expensive process. It’s not available through legal aid so has to be privately financed. Equally, you can’t just contest a Will because you feel like it, you have to have documented evidence that ligitimises your claim.
A source has stated that Kenny doesn’t feel George’s Will reflects the contribution he made to their relationship. So, as the Will is still under wraps, it’s likely that Kenny could know he’s a beneficiary. To what extent that is is confidential until the Will is read.
The key here is that Kenny will have to prove that George meant for him to have a greater share of his fortune.
Please note that this article is meant as general guidance and not intended as legal or professional advice. Updates to the law may have changed since this article was published.