Tony Bennett’s daughters sue their brother over handling of late singer’s assets
The sisters are seeking unspecified ‘equitable relief’ as well as a full accounting and inventory of the trust.
Tony Bennett’s two daughters are suing their brother, alleging he mishandled and failed to disclose some of their father’s assets in his role as trustee of the late singer’s estate.
The lawsuit filed on Wednesday in New York by Antonia and Johanna Bennett accuses D’Andrea “Danny” Bennett of not accounting for all of the proceeds from this year’s sale of their father’s catalogue and certain image rights to the brand development firm Iconoclast.
The court filing claims that “it remains unclear what music assets (and other property) were or were not sold as part of the deal” because the sisters “have not been provided with various details of the transaction despite repeated requests”.
Danny Bennett, who was the singer’s manager and runs the family trust, did not respond on Thursday to an email and phone message seeking comment on the lawsuit. Another brother, Daegal “Dae” Bennett, and the singer’s widow Susan Benedetto were also named in the lawsuit.
The lawsuit further alleges Danny Bennett “obtained personal benefits for himself and his company” from transactions, including the sale of memorabilia, made on behalf of Tony Bennett, the family trust and Benedetto Arts LLC.
The sisters are seeking unspecified “equitable relief” as well as a full accounting and inventory of the trust. It demands Danny Bennett turn over receipts, disbursements, expenditures and tax returns.
“Although Danny and his counsel have provided piecemeal information and produced some documents to petitioners’ counsel, the information provided raises more questions than answers and fails to provide anything close to an accounting of Tony’s assets and financial affairs,” the court filing said.
Tony Bennett, a legendary interpreter of classic American songs who created new standards such as I Left My Heart In San Francisco, died last July at age 96. There was no specific cause, but Bennett had been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease in 2016.
Bennett released more than 70 albums, bringing him 19 competitive Grammys.
