The family of Michael Jackson are suing the concert promoters behind a series of shows he was due to perform in London, England, in 2009, for $40 billion.
Katherine Jackson, the mother of Michael, as well as his three children, Prince, Paris, and Blanket, want $10 billion to make up for earnings that they have lost, because these concerts were cancelled after his death.
The Jacksons are also seeking a further $20 billion in other damages. This court case is against Anschutz Entertainment Group, the company who orchestrated the gigs at London’s O2 arena, and will begin next month.
Jackson died in 2009, at the age of 50, in his Los Angeles home just weeks before the shows were set to start. Jackson’s personal doctor, Conrad Murray, provided him with a lethal mixture of anaesthetic Propofol and benzodiazepine, which caused his death.
Murray was then jailed for two years last year after he was charged with the involuntary manslaughter of the King of Pop.
Propofol is usually restricted to use in hospital operating theatres, but Murray decided to inject the singer to help him sleep. This was because Jackson was exhausted after rehearsing for the 50 concerts in London.
AEG are expected to argue against the large sum of money that is being requested because they feel that Jackson’s career was waning at the time.
TMZ have reportedly obtained various legal documents that outline the Jackson family’s plea against AEG. This includes the hiring and supervision of Murray.
Last year, leaked emails revealed that senior executives at AEG Live were aware that Michael Jackson was suffering from various health problems.
One email even described Jackson as “an emotionally paralysed mess riddled with self-loathing and doubt now that it is show time.”
The case in set to start in Los Angeles on April 2.
Do you believe that Michael Jackson’s family deserve this large sum of reparations?