Mom's Money.

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Author: Barrett, William P.

OCTOBER 11, 2004

The battle between the heiress' kids and the gigolo is finally coming to a close. Last year we told the saga of three siblings of the Bancroft family enmeshed in messy New Mexico litigation over their late mother Jacqueline (Jackie) Spencer Morgan's estate, now pegged at $72 million. Jackie Morgan's children (all former Forbes 400 members), from the family that controls Wall Street Journal parent Dow Jones, were aligned against Ronnie Lee Morgan, the much younger, openly gay interior designer their mother married late in life.

The children have tentatively agreed to a settlement that would give Morgan an estimated $12 million outright. Negotiations accelerated after a March 2005 report by a court-appointed expert witness who stated, "It has become clear to me that the trustees have materially breached their fiduciary duties in a number of instances." He cited violations of trust law--including an attempt to cut off yearly income their mother had specified for Morgan--accounting irregularities and a lack of fairness in allocating expenses among beneficiaries.

It looks like the Bancrofts and their trustees should have stuck to the original estate plan. Taking into account taxes and the present value of future payments, Ronnie Lee Morgan would have gotten a lot less then he's about to get now.

PHOTO (BLACK & WHITE): Jacqueline (Jackie) Spencer Morgan

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By William P. Barrett