Since 2023, Elvis Presley’s ex-wife, Priscilla Presley, has been locked in a legal battle with her former business partners. That conflict reached new heights this week with shocking claims as part of a new filing.
Two years ago, Priscilla’s ex-business partners alleged the 80-year-old breached her contract. Now, those same ex-partners have claimed Priscilla “pulled the plug” on her daughter, Lisa Marie Presley, in 2023 despite a “clear directive to ‘prolong her life,’” according to a lawsuit filed Monday in Los Angeles County.
The ex-business partners are suing for $50 million, accusing Priscilla of fraud and breach of contract. The lawsuit accuses Priscilla of “defrauding” her business partners, using her “celebrity status to destroy reputations with unsubstantiated claims” and “exploit[ing] the tragic death of her daughter…to regain control over Elvis Presley’s legacy and assets,” according to a statement from the plaintiffs’ legal team.
Priscilla’s attorney, Marty Singer, vehemently denied these allegations.
“Accusing a grieving mother of contributing to her daughter’s death is not savvy advocacy; it is malicious character assassination, and should be broadly condemned. These fabricated claims have absolutely no validity and we are confident this case will be dismissed,” Singer said in a statement.
Here’s what you need to know about the ongoing legal saga that has involved one of the most famous names in American history:
Priscilla Presley was sued for breach of contract
The legal saga began when Priscilla Presley Partners sued Priscilla in October 2023 for breach of contract.
Priscilla worked with auctioneer Brigitte Kruse to form Priscilla Presley Partners in January 2023, according to the lawsuit filed in Florida. The pair agreed Priscilla Presley Partners would “own, control, develop, protect, and commercially exploit Priscilla’s [Name, Image and Likeness],” the lawsuit says.
The LLC was formed after Priscilla approached Kruse “regarding taking over formal management of her business and personal affairs” in August 2022, the lawsuit states.
The lawsuit claims Kruse and her associate, Kevin Fialko, then helped dig Priscilla “out of impending financial ruin.” This came just as news broke that Sofia Coppola would be directing a film adaptation of Priscilla’s memoir, Elvis and Me. The film, Priscilla, was released in 2023.
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In August 2023, the lawsuit says Kruse received a cease-and-desist letter from Priscilla’s new adviser accusing her of misconduct. The letter came just before the film premiered at the Venice Film Festival. Priscilla and her new adviser then “cut off all communication” with Kruse and others at Priscilla Presley Partners, according to the lawsuit.
In subsequent court filings, Priscilla’s legal team denied the allegations and argued that Kruse “targeted” her. Priscilla broke off the relationship because she discovered financial wrongdoing, her attorney said at the time.
“My client made significant claims against [Priscilla Presley Partners] and its principals…for misappropriating hundreds of thousands of dollars long before this specious lawsuit was filed,” Singer told Billboard in a statement. “We fully anticipate that my client will be vindicated and obtain a judgment against them.”
The case stretched on until last month, when public records show the judge issued a stay. The judge canceled all previously scheduled hearings and ordered the clerk to “administratively close” the case.
Priscilla fires back with 2024 lawsuit alleging elder abuse
Priscilla fired back the next year, accusing Kruse and Fialko of engaging in elder abuse and fraud.
The lawsuit, filed in Los Angeles, claims the two “fraudulently” coerced Priscilla into “giving them power of attorney, control over her family and personal trusts and control over her bank accounts,” according to USA Today.
The lawsuit claimed that Kruse and Fialko used the opportunity to “prey on an older woman by gaining her trust, isolating her from the most important people in her life, and duping her into believing that they would take care of her (personally and financially), while their real goal was to drain her of every last penny she had,” USA Today reported.
Kruse and Fialko’s attorney, Jordan Matthews, has denied the allegations and even addressed the claims in a statement released Monday.
“As detailed video recordings and communications already confirm, there is absolutely no evidence of undue influence, coercion, or elder abuse involved, only a legitimate, well-documented business partnership,” he said.
Matthews added that Monday’s lawsuit indicates his clients are the “real victims.”
“The evidence will establish that the real victims here are my clients, who invested millions and years of hard work into revitalizing Priscilla Presley’s brand, only to be betrayed and falsely accused once the money was on the table and every personal and business issue had been resolved,” he said.
Matthew said they are looking forward to taking the case to trial.
“My clients want their day in court. The truth is not salacious and my clients will not be bullied,” he said in a statement.
Lawsuit says Priscilla ‘pulled the plug’ on her daughter
Now, Kruse and Fialko are suing Priscilla for breach of contract and fraud, seeking at least $50 million. The lawsuit claims Priscilla “ultimately wanted one thing, power, no matter the cost.”
The lawsuit includes the bombshell allegation that Priscilla “pulled the plug” on her daughter, Lisa Marie, who came into Elvis’ inheritance in 1993 and was the sole heir of his Graceland estate in Memphis.
Lisa Marie died of a small bowel obstruction in January 2023 at the age of 54.
“Lisa was noticeably ill, complaining to Priscilla about her health. Priscilla ignored the warning signs despite being only a short drive from the world-renowned Cedars-Sinai Medical Center,” the lawsuit states. “Instead, Priscilla clasped to the spotlight, going out to the Chateau Marmont for drinks with Lisa, and then sent Lisa on a long drive to her Calabasas home.”
A day later, Lisa Marie suffered cardiac arrest and was rushed to the hospital. The lawsuit claims Priscilla knew Lisa was trying to remove her as the sole trustee of her irrevocable life insurance trust at the time.
“Priscilla rushed to West Hills Hospital, and despite Lisa’s clear directive to ‘prolong her life,’ Priscilla pulled the plug within hours of Lisa being admitted, and before her granddaughter, Riley, was able to get to the hospital, demanding that Kruse issue a statement to the media, so she could control the narrative,” the lawsuit adds.
Authorities have not claimed any wrongdoing in Lisa Marie’s death, and the Los Angeles County medical examiner’s autopsy report said she died from complications from surgery.
Priscilla’s attorney rejected the allegations.
“This is, without a doubt, one of the most shameful, ridiculous, salacious, and meritless lawsuits I have seen in my practice,” Singer said in a statement. “This is nothing more than a sad and vicious attempt to falsely tarnish the reputation of an eighty year old woman in blatant retaliation for bringing a lawsuit to redress the wrongful conduct of Brigitte Kruse, Kevin Fialko, and their co-conspirators.”
“Our client, Priscilla Presley filed a complaint over a year ago in which she alleges that she was the victim of a concerted effort by Brigitte Kruse and Kevin Fialko (among others) to isolate her from her trusted advisors and dupe her into signing a series of agreements in which Kruse contends she gave them a majority interest in Presley’s own name, image, and likeness, in perpetuity, and that purportedly required Presley to get their permission before even accepting any offer of employment or otherwise,” he added.
Singer noted that Keough “stands behind her grandmother 100% and is equally disgusted with this latest, vicious attempt by Kruse to attempt to ruin her grandmother’s life.”
Riley Keough and Elvis Presley’s Graceland Estate
Lisa Marie was the sole heir to her father’s estate, including his Graceland mansion. Her daughter, actress, Riley Keough, then became the sole trustee of Lisa Marie’s estate in August 2023 after settling a legal battle with Priscilla, People reports.
Keough now owns the Graceland estate.
Graceland made headlines last year after a plot to fraudulently sell the estate. Lisa Jeanine Findley, 53, was charged in connection with the scheme and pleaded guilty in February to one count of mail fraud.
Prosecutors say Findley attempted to fraudulently sell Graceland by “falsely claiming that Elvis Presley’s daughter had pledged Graceland as collateral for a loan that she failed to repay before her death,” according to a statement from the Justice Department.
“Findley threatened to foreclose on Graceland and auction it to the highest bidder if Elvis Presley’s family did not pay or settle the claim against the estate,” the statement continues.
Findley is set to be sentenced on September 23.
