Who Stands to Inherit Prince's Estate
Prince did not have a will.
— -- A Minnesota judge has determined that Prince died "intestate" or without a will, which means his sister and five surviving half-siblings stand to inherit his multimillion dollar estate.
The Carver County probate judge appointed Bremer Trust as special administrator of the late musician's estate following an informal telephone conference Wednesday with some of his possible heirs.
Prince's sister, Tyka Nelson, who attended the hearing, filed paperwork on Tuesday asking for the appointment of a special administrator, stating that she did not believe her late brother had a will and that decisions about his business interests needed to be made.
For the next six months or until a personal representative is appointed, Bremer will manage and supervise Prince's assets and determine his heirs.
Another possible heir, Prince's half sibling Omarr Baker, also attended Wednesday's hearing.
Prince Rogers Nelson died at his Paisley Park home in Chanhassen, Minnesota, a suburb of Minneapolis, on April 21. He was 57.
Twice divorced, he left no surviving spouse. He had one child, who died one week after birth.
His parents, John L. Nelson, a jazz musician, and Mattie Shaw, a singer, preceded him in death. They divorced in 1966 when Prince was 8 and Tyka was 6.
Prince also had seven half-siblings. Before his father married his mother, John Nelson had three daughters and two sons from a previous relationship.
After Prince's parents split, Shaw later remarried and had two sons, Omarr Baker and Alfred Jackson.
His half-sister Lorna Nelson died in 2006 and his half-brother Duane Nelson, who once worked as head of security at Paisley Park, died in 2011.
In her petition, Tyka listed the five remaining half-siblings as possible heirs or "interested persons."
They are half-brothers John Nelson, Alfred Jackson and Omarr Baker and half-sisters Norrine Nelson and Sharon Nelson.
According to the laws in Minnesota, since Prince died without a will or trust, his estate would be divided between his sister and all of his half-siblings, who are treated like full siblings in that state.
Tyka said the value of his assets, including real estate and cash, are "unknown." But it's sure to have increased since his death. More than 2.3 million songs and over half a million albums have sold since last Thursday, according to Nielsen Music.
Besides royalties from more than 30 albums, Prince owned his master recordings following his well-publicized dispute with Warner Bros., and was believed to have a trove of unheard recordings.