Carson City, Nev. – A hearing on Wednesday before the Superior Court of Nevada can provide the first public window to a secret legal dispute over who will control the powerful empire of the media of Rupert Murdoch after he dies.
The case has been developed behind closed doors in the state court in Reno, and most of the documents under seal. But the New York Times reports, which said he obtained some of the documents, revealed Murdoch’s efforts to keep one of his children, Lachlan, in charge and make sure Fox News maintains his conservative editorial inclination.
The media, including The Times and Associated Press, are now asking the Supreme Court of Nevada to defmit the case and make future audiences public. The court is expected to listen to arguments in the afternoon in Carson City, the capital.
The Murdoch Middle Empire, which also includes the Wall Street Journal and the New York Post, covers continents and helped shape modern American politics. Lachlan Murduoch has been the chief of Fox News and News Corp. since his father resigned in 2023.
The problem in the center of the case is the family confidence of Rupert Murdoch, which after his death would divide the control of the company equally among four of his children: Lachlan, Prudence, Elisabeth and James.
Irrevocable trusts are generally used to limit heritage taxes, among other reasons, and cannot be changed without the permission of the beneficiaries or through a court order.
Rupert Murdoch has tried to alter confidence, and Prudcence, Elisabeth and James have joined to try to stop that. It is known that James and Elisabeth have less conservative political opinions than their father or brother, which can complicate the desire of the means of maintaining the political tone of Fox News.
The dispute has had many turns and turns, including a succession commissioner that governs against Rupert Murdoch in December.
In an opinion of 96 pages, the commissioner characterized the plan to change confidence as a “carefully elaborate farce” to “permanently cement the executive roles of Lachlan Murdoch” within the empire “regardless of the impacts that such control would have on the companies or the beneficiaries” of family trust, according to the Times.
Adam Streisand, a lawyer for Rupert Murdoch, told the newspaper at that time that they were disappointed with the ruling and that they intended to appeal. Another probative hearing is scheduled for this month.
