A settlement has been reached in the court battle over the estate of Brooke Astor, the long-reigning queen of New York society and philanthropy, according to her grandson, Philip Marshall.
The settlement, ratified on Wednesday in Westchester County Surrogate’s Court, lays out how Mrs. Astor’s roughly $100 million fortune will be distributed, and cuts in half the inheritance of her only child, Anthony D. Marshall, who was convicted three years ago of stealing from her in the later years of her life.
Mrs. Astor died in 2007 at age 105.
“It is great news for everyone that the will contest has settled without a trial,” Philip Marshall wrote in a text message. Mr. Marshall feuded bitterly with his father, Anthony, and was the first to publicly accuse him of mishandling Mrs. Astor’s affairs.
The office of Attorney General Eric T. Schneiderman “has done a great job representing the unnamed charities who are beneficiaries,” Mr. Marshall added.
No control over grants to charities
Under the settlement, Anthony Marshall and his wife, Charlene, were stripped of control over which charities would receive tens of millions of dollars from the estate.
Anthony Marshall and Francis X. Morrissey Jr., a lawyer who did estate planning for Mrs. Astor, were convicted in State Supreme Court in Manhattan of defrauding and stealing from her, and were both sentenced to one to three years in prison. Both remain free pending appeal.
The battle over Mrs. Astor’s estate centered on whether her assets should be distributed according to her most recent will, from 2002, or an earlier version, which directed more money to charity.
At issue was whether Mrs. Astor was mentally competent when she signed the 2002 will, which was amended in late 2003 and again in early 2004. Those changes gave her son more control over her estate and reduced the amount of money she had bequeathed to various New York universities, libraries, parks and museums.
The settlement is based on Mrs. Astor’s 2002 will and nullifies the later amendments. The second of those amendments gave Mr. Marshall outright control of Mrs. Astor’s estate, and Mr. Marshall and Mr. Morrissey were convicted of tricking Mrs. Astor into signing it.
Mr. Marshall’s inheritance was cut to $14.5 million from about $31 million; in addition, $12.3 million in restitution sought by the Manhattan district attorney’s office was ordered, and some of it will be disbursed to charity. Under the settlement, Mr. Marshall and his wife will not be able to choose which charities get bequests from Mrs. Astor’s estate or how they are to be used. The settlement is binding regardless of what happens with Mr. Marshall’s criminal appeal.
Grants to education, parks
The settlement creates a $30 million Brooke Astor Fund for New York City Education, which will award grants intended to improve education in the city over a five-year period.
Millions of dollars will go to Prospect Park, Central Park and city playgrounds, and additional funds will go to cultural institutions including the New York Public Library, the Metropolitan Museum of Art and Carnegie Hall.
“Brooke Astor was at the center of New York philanthropy for nearly half a century,” Mr. Schneiderman said in a statement. “Her legendary generosity and charisma touched New Yorkers of all backgrounds. I am pleased that my office led the way to an agreement that honors Mrs. Astor’s final wishes and benefits New York’s landmark educational and cultural institutions.”
A trust worth roughly $50 million under the name of Vincent Astor, who was married to Mrs. Astor when he died, also will be distributed as part of the settlement. About $4 million worth of art work will be donated to various cultural institutions including the Pierpont Morgan Library and the Metropolitan Museum. The museum also will receive $3 million for a Childe Hassam painting that it was supposed to get under one of Mrs. Astor’s earlier wills. Mr. Marshall sold the painting for $10 million and kept a $2 million commission. Prosecutors charged Mr. Marshall with theft in connection with that sale, but he was acquitted of that count.
Sotheby’s has scheduled in September an auction that will include some art work, jewelry and household furnishings from the estate.
Mrs. Astor’s storybook life took a nasty turn in her later years when Philip Marshall accused his father of mistreating her as she suffered from dementia. The son sought to appoint a guardian for his mother. The allegations that Mrs. Astor’s son had her living in squalor in her multimillion-dollar Park Avenue apartment shocked a social stratosphere in which Mrs. Astor rubbed elbows with the likes of Henry Kissinger, David Rockefeller and Annette de la Renta.
This article, "Settlement Reached in Battle Over Astor Estate," first appeared in The New York Times.
