Additional Coverage:
- Priscilla Presley blasts lawsuit claiming she pulled plug on Lisa Marie to gain control of Elvis’ estate (foxnews.com)
Priscilla Presley Faces $50 Million Lawsuit from Former Business Partners
Priscilla Presley, Elvis Presley’s widow, is facing a $50 million lawsuit filed by her former business partners, Brigitte Kruse and Kevin Fialko. The suit, filed in Los Angeles Superior Court, alleges a complex scheme involving fraud, cover-ups, and exploitation of Lisa Marie Presley’s death.
Among the most serious allegations is the claim that Priscilla Presley had Lisa Marie taken off life support against her daughter’s wishes, just hours after Lisa Marie’s cardiac arrest in January 2023. The lawsuit contends Priscilla Presley saw an opportunity to regain control of the Presley estate, as Lisa Marie was reportedly in the process of removing her mother as trustee of a multimillion-dollar trust.
The suit alleges Priscilla Presley then manipulated the media narrative to position herself as the grieving family figurehead. Priscilla Presley’s attorney, Marty Singer, vehemently denies these accusations, calling them a “shameful” and “disgusting” attempt at “malicious character assassination.”
Beyond the allegations surrounding Lisa Marie’s death, Kruse and Fialko claim Priscilla Presley concealed a prior sale of her name, image, and likeness (NIL) rights to Elvis Presley Enterprises for $6.5 million in 2005. They allege she leveraged her image to secure investments from them while hiding this prior agreement. When confronted, the lawsuit states, Priscilla Presley denied the sale and later claimed to have forgotten about it.
Kruse and Fialko assert they invested significant time and money revitalizing Priscilla Presley’s brand and resolving her financial difficulties, including nearly $700,000 in tax debt. They further claim they negotiated a $2.4 million settlement for Priscilla Presley in a legal dispute with her granddaughter, Riley Keough, over the estate.
Subsequently, they allege Priscilla Presley severed ties with them, damaged their reputations, and filed a retaliatory elder abuse lawsuit. Their attorney, Jordan Matthews, argues Kruse and Fialko are the true victims, betrayed after investing heavily in Priscilla Presley’s brand.
The lawsuit also implicates Keya Morgan, previously charged with elder abuse in a separate case involving Marvel icon Stan Lee. Kruse and Fialko accuse Morgan of coaching Priscilla Presley to make false abuse claims and threatening them.
Priscilla Presley filed her own lawsuit against Kruse and Fialko last year, alleging they isolated her from advisors, controlled her finances, and deceived her into signing numerous unfavorable contracts. A judge in that case acknowledged the potential for elder abuse if Priscilla Presley’s allegations were proven.
Kruse and Fialko, however, maintain the elder abuse narrative is fabricated and are seeking over $50 million in damages, demanding Priscilla Presley cease profiting from her NIL outside their jointly formed companies. This complex legal battle continues to unfold, with both sides presenting starkly different accounts of the events.