Last Thursday, June 25, 2009, the 9th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals, heard oral arguments in the case of Marshall v. Marshall, regarding the decade long ongoing battle over the J. Howard Marshall/Anna Nicole Smith, a.k.a., Vickie Lynn Marshall estate. It was conducted in Seattle at the William Kenzo Nakamura United States Courthouse.  According to my sources, Larry Birkhead and his team were able to hide out and avoid media, showing up in the courtroom around 11:00 a.m..  Whereas, Howard K. Stern, the primary executor of Anna Nicole’s estate, most likely did not show up due to the impending criminal charges against him in Los Angeles. The parties addressed: (1) whether Vickie Lynn Marshall’s (“Vickie”) claim was a “core” bankruptcy proceeding; (2) if Vickie’s claim was not a “core” bankruptcy proceeding, whether the Texas probate court’s judgment precludes Vickie’s claim, in whole, or, in part; (3) whether the statute of frauds affects Vickie’s ability to establish her claim; (4) whether the discovery sanctions ordered by the district court were reasonable; and (5) if Vickie’s surviving child is a real party in interest and has no guardian ad litem, whether the court should appoint a guardian ad litem and, if so, Read More …

Former television sex symbol Farrah Fawcett, 62, passed away this morning at Saint John’s Health Center in Santa Monica. She had been battling anal cancer since 2006 before it metastasized to her liver. Ironically, she accepted longtime beau Ryan O’ Neill’s proposal of marriage earlier this month. Also today, pop star Michael Jackson died at the age of 50. Jackson suffered a heart attack in his rented Bel-Air home and was rushed to UCLA Medical Center, where paramedics were unable to revive him. The news comes as he was attempting a comeback after years of tabloid headlines, most notably his trial and acquittal on child molestation charges. Jackson family attorney, Brian Oxman, gave interviews today stating he was “heartbroken” and concerned that Michael’s “abuse” of prescription medication could be fatal.  Oxman further stated if one day Michael ended up dead, then he would speak out “loud and clear about what he saw about the abuse of medications and the people that enabled him.” It will be interesting to see what happens with the three children and his estate.