Michael Jackson’s alleged victim accuses estate of attempted defamation (except)
By Ryan Naumann | Published: 2025-10-30 13:40:00 | Source: Us Weekly
One of Michael JacksonThe alleged victims accused the real estate executors of trying to smear and silence him. Us Weekly Can provide an exclusive report. This allegation comes months after his perpetrators accused him of extortion worth $44 million.
On October 6, Frank Cascio — who along with four members of his family obtained a settlement from Jackson’s estate after sexual assault allegations were raised — responded to Jackson’s estate in court.
Cascio claimed the petition was filed by estate executors John Branca and John McClanealong with Michael Jackson’s company, were not made “in good faith”.
He said it was “an attempt by (the executors and the company) to protect themselves and Michael Jackson’s estate from accountability and public scrutiny.”
“[The enforcers]seek to use an illegal agreement as a weapon to silence, discredit, and discredit victims of child sexual abuse (Cascio and his family members), and to preserve Michael Jackson’s carefully guarded legacy, reputational interests, and financial interests.”
Casio lawyer Mark GeragosHe said that the settlement that his client signed before he represented him was unenforceable. “California has made clear that confidentiality and nondisclosure provisions designed to conceal sexual assault are unlawful and contrary to public policy,” the filing said.
Geragos said the settlement “was intended to prevent (Cascio and his family) from speaking publicly about their experiences with Michael Jackson — exactly the type of restriction that the Legislature deemed illegal.” Even if the settlement were valid, Cascio said, he should be allowed to void it on the grounds of “coercion, undue influence, and the estate’s failure to provide them with the opportunity to retain counsel or meaningful consent.”
Cassio’s lawyer said that the executioners’ accusation that his client was involved in “civil extortion” was “unfounded and debunked.”
“It is a transparent attempt to distract from (perpetrators’) misconduct and recast legitimate efforts to seek accountability as illegitimate,” Geragos added. “(Cascio and his team) have at all times acted responsibly and in good faith, and attempted to address very serious matters through legal and appropriate means.”
Michael Jackson
Ron Wolfson/WireImageGeragos said Cassio and his family were in close contact with Jackson from the early 1980s until at least 2009.
“This abusive contact occurred over a period of decades and involved hundreds of instances. Each of Cassio’s children was groomed, brainwashed and severely manipulated into believing that each was uniquely ‘special’ to Michael and that their relationship with him was exclusive,” Girgaus claimed in his filing.
“This deliberate emotional manipulation was designed to ensure the loyalty of each family member and ensure their silence, leaving them feeling indebted to Michael and isolated from any source of protection or perspective,” Cassio’s attorney claimed. “Through years of psychological conditioning, Michael instilled dependence and fear in young Cassius, making (Cassio and his family members) believe they had no choice but to comply and there was no safe way to break free.”
“The effects of this conditioning continued into adulthood, leaving respondents with a firm belief that speaking out would constitute betrayal — a dynamic that the institution continued to exploit in its dealings with them,” the filing said.
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Casio’s lawyer said after the 2019 documentary Leaving Neverlandwhere Wade Robson and James Safechuck Jackson was accused of abusing them as children, and Cassio and his family members shared their experiences with each other for the first time.
At about the same time, Geragos said, “The estate organized a secret settlement in an attempt to silence (Cassio and members of his family). The psychological control and subordination instilled in the Cassio family during their youth made them particularly vulnerable during their contact with representatives of the estate.”
Cassio’s lawyer said the estate rushed to a settlement that was disguised as a “life rights” agreement.
“This false characterization was a last-minute device intended to mislead (Cassio and members of his family), the probate court, and the beneficiaries of the estate, and constituted a bad faith misrepresentation intended to conceal the true nature of the transaction and deprive them of knowledge of the settlement,” the papers alleged.
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“To further this scheme, the estate caused the creation of several new companies through which payments would be funneled to Cassio’s five children,” Geragos added, while Geragos claimed the estate “discouraged” the Cassio family from seeking “independent legal advice.”
“The agreement is designed as a ‘rights to life’ agreement that makes no reference to the sexual assault allegations (of Cassio and his family members),” Geragos added. “By framing the document as relating to ‘life rights’ — a term typically associated with entertainment and biographical fiction — (the executors) concealed the true purpose and effect of the agreement: the permanent waiver and release of (Cascio and members of his family)’ claims arising from Michael Jackson’s sexual assault.”
The legal drama began on July 9 after Branca, McLean and Michael Jackson’s company filed a lawsuit against Cascio.
Branca and McLean, acting as executors of the estate, claimed that Cassio attempted to carry out a $213 million civil extortion scheme against the estate.
Wade Robson
Peter Kramer/NBC/NBC NewsWireEnforcers alleged that Cassio spoke favorably about his relationship with Jackson for decades. According to the lawsuit, Cassio was one of Jackson’s most vocal defenders during his criminal trials for child molestation, and denied seeing the singer abuse children.
In the filing, the executors also noted that Cassio wrote a book in 2011 titled My friend Michael: an ordinary friendship with an extraordinary manwhich they call a 300-plus page tribute to Jackson that “honors and champions him over the 25 years Frank knew him.”
“However, following Michael’s death and the financial success of The Estate of Michael Jackson, (Cascio) and his associates threatened that unless they were paid significant sums, they would disavow their vigorous defense of Michael and instead announce charges that were diametrically opposed to their consistent declarations of his innocence,” the executors’ filing said. “It was blackmail.”
Enforcers said Cassio saw an opportunity to make money after his release Leaving Neverland.
In 2020, Michael Jackson’s company “reluctantly” concluded a secret deal with Cassio. Under the agreement, Cassio and his family members received payments over five years. The executors said the agreement was reached to prevent Jackson’s children from hearing “further false allegations” and to protect Jackson’s legacy.
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After the deal was pushed through, the executors claimed that Cascio’s then-attorney demanded that Cascio be paid hundreds of millions, $213 million to be exact, or he would file “a bogus lawsuit containing bizarre accusations against Michael that are completely inconsistent with their previous statements supporting and defending Michael. The executors refused to comply with the demand.”
Cassio recently decided to hire a new attorney, Geragos, the petition said. Executors point out that Geragos also defended Jackson in the press over the years.
Jackson’s team has demanded that the dispute be heard through arbitration, which they claimed was a clause in the 2020 deal.
Court documents alleged that Cascio reduced his demand to $44 million once Geragos took over the case.
(Tags for translation) Celebrity news (R) Exclusively
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