Anna Nicole Smith's 6-year-old daughter could receive up to $49 million in sanctions from the son of Anna Nicole's former husband.
A court ruled that the late 'Playboy' model and 'Trimspa' spokeswoman was not entitled to her former husband J. Howard Marshall's assets, including an estate and a bunch of cash. Instead, the federal judge said that Anna Nicole's daughter, Dannielynn, might be able to inherit almost $49 million from Marshall's son, E. Pierce.
J. Howard's property lawyers have been accused of, "delaying tactics like shipping crucial legal documents to a lawyer in Lake Charles, La. to try and keep them out of the hands of Smith's lawyers," Forbes reported. The judge made his ruling based on these allegations.
This tug-of-war has been going on for more than 10 years, according to the New York Post.
Anna Nicole's lawyers have been trying to get back hundreds of millions of dollars from the enormous, sprawling property her husband owned, estimated to be worth between $500 million and $1 billion.
J. Howard passed away in 1995 at 90 years old, just one year after he married the then-26-year-old model. He did not mention her at all in his will.
Smith's estate lawyer, Phil Boesch, told Forbes that Dannielynn deserved to inherit the property.
"This is a complete vindication of Anna Nicole's rights, and a total condemnation of what was done to her," he said. "We are confident that the amount Anna's estate and daughter Dannielynn will finally be awarded will be fair and substantial."
Anna Nicole died in 2007 at 39 years old, due to a drug overdose. Her daughter Dannielynn currently lives with her father, Larry Birkhead, in Los Angeles with his 19-year-old nephew. The 6-year-old child has followed in her mother's footsteps, appearing in Guess? ad campaigns as a child model.
