The long-running legal battle between Michael Jackson’s estate and two of his most prominent accusers has escalated, with Wade Robson and James Safechuck demanding a staggering $400 million payout.
The figure, revealed for the first time through newly surfaced legal documents obtained by Us Weekly, stems from Robson and Safechuck’s lawsuit against Jackson’s companies, MJJ Productions and MJJ Ventures. Jackson’s estate issued the following statement to Billboard: “The lawsuit has no merit and Michael is innocent.”
According to the filings, the revelation of the demand came indirectly, as part of Jackson’s daughter Paris Jackson’s own dispute with the estate’s attorneys.
Paris is currently battling what she claims are exorbitant legal fees incurred after the estate hired additional firms to assist in fighting the ongoing litigation.
The estate has warned that if these attorneys are not paid, the lack of proper legal representation could result in a default judgment in favor of Robson and Safechuck.
Robson and Safechuck, who were featured in the controversial 2019 HBO documentary Leaving Neverland, have long maintained that Jackson sexually abused them during visits to the King of Pop’s Neverland Ranch in the late ’80s and early ’90s.
Their claims, detailed in graphic accounts in the documentary, reignited global debate about Jackson’s legacy.
Jackson himself was never convicted of any wrongdoing tied to these accusations and consistently maintained his innocence up until his death in 2009. MJJ Productions and MJJ Ventures continue to deny the allegations, standing firm against Robson and Safechuck’s claims despite the mounting legal pressure.
With the estate now forced to juggle both its defense against the lawsuit and internal battles over mounting legal costs, the case underscores just how contentious Jackson’s legacy remains more than a decade after his passing.