Following the sudden death of her daughter two weeks ago, Priscilla Presley is asking a California judge to step in and dismiss an alleged 2016 amendment to Lisa Marie Presley’s live trust as “invalid.”
Elvis’ widow claims in a new court filing that since Lisa Marie’s death on January 12, she has “discovered” a controversial document seeking to remove her and former chief executive Barry Siegel as co-trustees of their daughter’s Promenade Trust . The origins of the alleged change were not apparent from the 2016 filing.
The alleged March 11, 2016 amendment names Lisa Marie’s daughter Riley Keough and now-deceased son Benjamin Keough as alternate co-trustees, the new filing with the Los Angeles County probate court said.
The position is powerful. According to SEC filings, The Promenade Trust retained a 15% interest in Elvis Presley Enterprises — the company that controls Graceland and the licensing of Elvis Presley’s intellectual property — after Lisa Marie bought an 85% stake in the company for $50 million in for cash, more than $22 million in stock and repayment of over $25 million in debt in 2005.
“There are many issues surrounding the authenticity and validity of the alleged 2016 amendment,” Priscilla and her attorney allege in the new 13-page filing obtained by Rolling Stone.
They allege that the document was “never served” on Priscilla during Lisa Marie’s lifetime, as required by the “express terms” of the deed of trust, that it misspells Priscilla’s name, that it was not witnessed or notarized, and that “Lisa Marie’s signature appears contradictory with their customary and customary signature.”
Importantly, the signature page doesn’t contain any text of the actual change “which may pose a higher risk of fraud.”
For these reasons, they are asking for a court order “declaring that the alleged 2016 amendment is invalid, confirming the validity and existence of the reformulated 2010 trust, and confirming that the applicant is a current trustee of the trust.”
Priscilla’s attorney, Brian M. Malloy, did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Rolling Stone.
Trending
TMZ, which first reported on the court filing, characterized the filing as a “controversial” move that pits Priscilla against her granddaughter Riley Keough. But Riley remains one of the beneficiaries of the trust, along with her two surviving sisters, Finley and Harper Lockwood. Benjamin Keough committed suicide in 2020.
At Lisa Marie’s funeral, both Priscilla and Riley Keough paid tribute to the singer, who died at the age of 54 after being treated for cardiac arrest at her home in Calabasas. The official cause of Lisa Marie’s death has been postponed by the Los Angeles County Coroner pending “further investigation.”