Rupert Murdoch fails in bid to change family trust: Report
Media mogul Rupert Murdoch leaves from his home in London.
Rupert Murdoch's attempt to amend his family trust was blocked by a Nevada commissioner on Tuesday (Dec 10), potentially hindering his plan to consolidate control of his media empire under his son Lachlan, said the New York Times, citing a sealed court document.
Nevada Commissioner Edmund Gorman has ruled that Rupert Murdoch and his son Lachlan acted in "bad faith" in attempting to modify the family's irrevocable trust, according to the decision filed on Saturday, as reported by the New York Times. The trust relates to the control of Murdoch's media empire, including Fox Corp and News Corp.
The court docket highlights it issued a recommendation or order on Saturday under seal.
Murdoch's current trust specifies that upon his passing, control of the company will be evenly split among his four eldest children: Lachlan, James, Elisabeth, and Prudence.
But as per court documents, he feels the conservative editorial stance of his properties can be ensured only if Lachlan is given full powers without interference from his siblings, some of whom have moderate stances.
In its current form, the trust gives an equal voice to all four children in the company's future direction.
James, Murdoch's second son and his sisters Elisabeth and Prudence- who is his eldest child from his first marriage- are seen as moderate voices. According to the NYT report, the three "were caught completely off-guard by their father’s effort to rewrite what was supposed to be an inviolable trust and have united to stop him."
About the Murdoch Trust
The trust was created around the time of Murdoch’s divorce from his second wife, Anna Murdoch Mann before he married Wendi in 1999.
The trust is basically a holding company of the family's shares in Murdoch companies like Fox News, Fox Broadcast Network and News Corp. His four older children as well as Chloe and Grace have equal shares, but the last two do not have voting rights.
The voting system at present is such that Murdoch will basically have veto power, meaning he cannot be outvoted, while Lachlan, James, Elisabeth and Prudence have a single vote each. Essentially what Murdoch wants to achieve through the legal proceedings is to give Lachlan the same voting power as himself, meaning he should not be outvoted in future.
(With inputs from agencies)