Michael Jackson accusers in six-figure fight with star's estate
- - Michael Jackson accusers in six-figure fight with star's estate
Taijuan Moorman, USA TODAYJanuary 15, 2026 at 9:19 PM
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Siblings who claim Michael Jackson sexually abused them as children are fighting against an arbitration agreement, an effort the musician's estate says amounts to a multimillion-dollar extortion plot.
Frank Cascio and his four siblings claim the "Thriller" singer groomed, brainwashed and sexually molested them for decades, from 1989 until his death in 2009. The Cascios allege that after the release of the 2019 docuseries "Leaving Neverland," they shared their experiences with each other for the first time, leading to negotiations with the Michael Jackson estate that the latter has characterized as a $213 million "shakedown."
After a 2020 settlement agreement mandated confidential arbitration – or a private, binding trial outside of the public court system – the estate, represented by attorney Marty Singer, filed a petition to compel arbitration in July. In October, the Cascios' legal team filed a motion in opposition, claiming the siblings were pressured into signing without legal representation.
Michael Jackson arrives at the Santa Barbara County Courthouse for his child molestation trial in Santa Maria, California, May, 12, 2005.
The Cascio siblings' attorney, Mark Geragos, claimed the arbitration agreement is "unenforceable" because it included "illegal nondisclosure provisions used to conceal childhood sexual abuse." The siblings also claim the estate made the agreement null by filing public petitions and divulging confidential information in open court.
The siblings appeared in court this week, according to TMZ and Rolling Stone, with one sibling appearing to be in tears. Geragos explained the siblings' appearance at the Wednesday, Jan. 14, hearing in a statement to USA TODAY.
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"The family traveled to court to see for themselves Mr. Singer and Mr. Branca on behalf of the estate call them liars just five years after Mr. Branca paid the Cascio family in a secret deal because he believed they were truth tellers," the attorney wrote.
The judge in the case made a tentative ruling in favor of the estate before Wednesday's hearing, saying the court was poised to compel arbitration, according to Rolling Stone. In court, Gegaros said he felt "passionately" that the ruling is "wrong on the law" and "on the trend in the legislature," the outlet reported.
Fans of Michael Jackson gather at the Buenos Aires Obelisk during a demonstration in support of the singer after the release of the documentary “Leaving Neverland,", Buenos Aires, Argentina, March 23, 2019.
In declaration filings, the siblings – including Frank Cascio, Aldo Cascio and Marie-Nicole Porte – recalled "hundreds of instances" of Jackson's alleged abuse, including intimate contact with them while staying at his home or traveling overseas with him. The siblings said the pop star made each child believe they were uniquely "special" to him.
In one incident in Las Vegas, the latter two siblings remembered being told to hide and remain silent in a hotel room when Geragos – who curiously represented Jackson in his 2003 child molestation case – would meet with the "Bad" singer.
Yet Frank Cascio, who claims he was under Jackson's "spell" during the criminal trial, publicly defended the singer, once telling CourtTV at the time: "I wouldn't be here if I thought that man was a pedophile."
Howard King, another of the siblings' attorneys, says he has 10 hours of sworn testimony from the five siblings, detailing Jackson's "horrific abuse," TMZ and Rolling Stone report. The attorney said he showed portions of the testimony to Singer who, King said, replied: "We're going to resolve this. That video will never see the light of day. … Make me an offer."
Singer told TMZ that King's account was an "outright lie."
USA TODAY has reached out to Singer for comment. The next hearing in the case is scheduled for March 5.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Michael Jackson sibling accusers fight agreement with estate
Source: “AOL Entertainment”
