Billionaire Benson's family sues over business inheritance change, control of NO Saints and Pelicans
An acrimonious divide in the family of New Orleans and San Antonio billionaire Tom Benson Jr. over future control of his sports, banking, media, real estate and auto dealership empire erupted this week into a pending court battle.
Benson, 87, owner of the National Football League’s New Orleans Saints and the National Basketball Association’s New Orleans Pelicans, on Wednesday abruptly announced that he will transfer his sports and other business interests to his third wife, Gayle, upon his death.
The move effectively cuts out his only surviving child, daughter Renee Benson of the San Antonio area, and her two children, Rita LeBlanc and Ryan LeBlanc, from inheriting his business operations.
On Thursday, Renee Benson and her children filed a lawsuit in a Louisiana civil court claiming Tom Benson does not possess the mental capacity to make the change. The lawsuit points to a prenuptial agreement and trusts that set up Renee Benson and her children to assume control of Tom Benson’s companies.
Read more: http://www.mysanantonio.com/business/local/article/Benson-empire-caught-up-in-family-court-battle-6035274.php
