Value of estate: $5 billion
Contested: $12 million
Feuding parties: Trouble, her Maltese dog and two grandchildren
Rich Bitch
Shortly after hotel queen Leona Helmsley died in 2007, the headline read, “Rich Bitch.” It wasn’t a slur directed to Helmsley; it was an accurate description of her beloved Maltese named Trouble. Helmsley had left $12 million in her will to her lapdog and nothing to two of her grandchildren. In 2008, a Manhattan judge reduced the bequest to $2 million after the dog’s caretaker stated it would be enough to keep the dog in luxury for the rest of her life. The two grandchildren left out of the will were awarded $3 million each. Trouble died in 2011.
8. James Brown
Value of estate: $100 million
Contested: $50 million
Feuding parties: His wife, children and more