Michael Jackson's Estate Claims Temporary Win In HBO "Leaving Neverland" Lawsuit

A judge sides with MJ's estate.

BYAron A.
Phil Walter/Getty Images

The estate of Michael Jackson isn't letting their foot off of HBO. Following the release of Leaving Neverland, MJ's estate took legal action against them. They claimed that HBO violated contract agreements stemming from Jackson's 1994 live concert special that aired on the network. Despite this, HBO's denied any wrongdoing and attempted to have the case thrown but it appears as if the judge isn't siding with them.

According to Variety, Judge George Wu handed over a temporary win to Jackson's estate in their suit against HBO. The judge dismissed HBO's motion to have the case thrown out. The estate has been fighting to get a public arbitration. The judge later told HBO to file an anti-SLAPP motion. However, since he denied their motion, the statute wouldn't apply to public arbitration.

"It was filed to chill speech,” HBO's lawyer argued over the judge's decision. “It was filed to tell the world, ‘Don’t talk about child sex abuse.’… A company like HBO may be able to fight back and move forward. Others might not be able to do that.”

The judge essentially called the legal battle a "clash of the titans" between a wealthy estate and a massive media company. However, the co-executor of Jackson's estate that HBO is simply trying to fight against having "all the facts" out in the open.

"I’ve never seen a media organization fight so hard to keep a secret,” he said. “We’re saying let’s get all the facts out there, not just two stories from two accusers with a financial interest."

Following the suit filed by Michael Jackson's estate over violating their contract agreement, the company argued that the contract is invalid.


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About The Author
Aron A. is a features editor for HotNewHipHop. Beginning his tenure at HotNewHipHop in July 2017, he has comprehensively documented the biggest stories in the culture over the past few years. Throughout his time, Aron’s helped introduce a number of buzzing up-and-coming artists to our audience, identifying regional trends and highlighting hip-hop from across the globe. As a Canadian-based music journalist, he has also made a concerted effort to put spotlights on artists hailing from North of the border as part of Rise & Grind, the weekly interview series that he created and launched in 2021. Aron also broke a number of stories through his extensive interviews with beloved figures in the culture. These include industry vets (Quality Control co-founder Kevin "Coach K" Lee, Wayno Clark), definitive producers (DJ Paul, Hit-Boy, Zaytoven), cultural disruptors (Soulja Boy), lyrical heavyweights (Pusha T, Styles P, Danny Brown), cultural pioneers (Dapper Dan, Big Daddy Kane), and the next generation of stars (Lil Durk, Latto, Fivio Foreign, Denzel Curry). Aron also penned cover stories with the likes of Rick Ross, Central Cee, Moneybagg Yo, Vince Staples, and Bobby Shmurda.