Campbell Estate Contest Heats Up

By Walter F. Roche Jr.

The battle over the estate of Glen Campbell has heated up again as the three children disinherited under a disputed will and the late singer's widow cannot even agree on when the case will go to trial.
The lawyer for the three Campbell barred from any inheritance is asking Davidson Probate Judge David "Randy" Kennedy to hold a hearing next month to resolve the dispute.
Campbell, 81, died on Aug. 8 of last year after a long battle with Alzheimer's disease. The will filed late last year leaves his estate to his widow Kimberly and five of his eight children.
The three disinherited children, William. Kelli and Wesley Campbell want the trial on their challenge to be held in late 2019 while Kimberly Campbell, Glen Campbell's widow, wants the trial to begin seven months earlier on April 1 of next year.
In addition the two sides are arguing over whether the late singer's business manager, Stanley B. Schneider, should be required to respond promptly to a subpoena seeking detailed financial and legal records spanning decades. Among documents sought are details of Campbell's ownership stake in the Arizona Diamondbacks.
Lawyers for Schneider and Mrs. Campbell say the subpoena cannot become effective until the trial date and other deadlines are set.
Calling the objection to the subpoena baseless, Christopher Fowler, attorney for the three children, wrote that the lack of a scheduling order is no reason to halt discovery.
"Mr. Schneider should be required to answer the subpoena, as issued, in a timely manner," the filing states.
He also disputed the claim that some of the documents were too old to be immediately available.
"The fact that the documents are old does not make them undiscoverable," the five page brief states.
Fowler also argued that the three children should not be required to file a formal complaint stating the reasons for contesting the will.
"No statute requires the filing of a complaint," the motion states, noting that Kennedy already has stated that the grounds for contesting the will are "undue influence and lack of testamentary capacity."
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