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“[F]or four months [the executors] been silent as to where this will was signed. They are concealing this from the court, and you cannot do that."
——Joe’s attorney Brian Oxman

JOE JACKSON ENTERS THE FRAY

Left Out of Michael’s Will, Dad’s Lawyer Files Petition Calling for Dismissal of Branca and McClain, Whose Lawyer Fires Back
The always credible Joe Jackson reared back and swung a roundhouse punch in the direction of John Branca and John McClain yesterday in an apparent effort to grab a chunk of the fortune being generated by his late son.

Jackson, who was not named as a beneficiary of the will, contends the two executors must be disqualified because they hid from the court a mistake regarding Michael’s signature, Joe's attorney Brian Oxman told CNN. The signature section of the will said it was signed on July 7, 2002, in L.A., although Oxman contends there is proof Michael was in New York on that date.

Said the attorney: "The executors have an obligation to tell the court the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth. But for four months they've been silent as to where this will was signed. They are concealing this from the court, and you cannot do that."

The petition filed by Oxman listed 11 grounds for Branca and McClain's dismissal, alleging the former had several conflicts of interest concerning his involvement with overseeing the publishing partnership between Jackson and Sony.

According to TMZ, Joe further claims an "investigation" showed an improper relationship between Branca and Tommy Mottola, in which the two were "illegally funneling Michael Jackson's money to off-shore accounts in the Caribbean." (We're not making this up.) The petition also makes the point that Branca was fired as Jackson's lawyer in 2003, but ignores the fact that he was subsequently rehired.

Howard Weitzman, one of the attorneys for Branca and McClain, responded with a statement in which he characterized Joe's claims as "so outrageous that they don't deserve any response. John Branca and John McClain, who were designated by Michael Jackson in his will as executors of his estate, will continue carrying out Michael's wishes for the benefit of his mother, his children and charities," Weitzman said.

Judge Mitchell Beckloff, who is overseeing the probate, will hold a hearing in L.A. Superior Court this morning, and Oxman expects him to choose a date to consider the arguments on these and other matters related to the estate.

Joe also filed a request last week asking Judge Beckloff to order the estate to pay him a monthly allowance. While he remains married to Katherine, the patriarch lives in Las Vegas and doesn’t get a piece of the monthly allowance from the estate.

Although Katherine is pursuing her own challenge via her legal team, including Londell McMillan, Oxman said his grounds for challenging them are separate and different from those of his wife.

Like the Eveready Bunny, this story just keeps going...and going...and going...