In an opinion entered yesterday (Marshall v. Marshall, No. 04-1544), the US Supreme Court gave former Playment and current diet products spokeswoman Anna Nicole Smith (real name Vickie Lynn Marshall) another bite at her deceased husband’s $1.6 billion estate. The Bankruptcy Court originally awarded Anna Nicole $474 million in a case filed against her late husband’s son, E. Pierce Marshall. However, the Ninth Circuit threw out the entire judgment, finding that the “probate exception” to federal jurisdiction precluded the Bankruptcy Court from hearing the case.
Both sides have vowed to continue the battle in lower courts.
For further discussion about the case and the Supreme Court’s opinion, see the Bankruptcy Litigation Blog and the article at Law.com.