Taylor Simone Ledward has rejected claims she mishandled the Black Panther star’s multimillion-dollar estate as a family probate dispute intensifies.
Chadwick Boseman’s brothers have been accused of mounting a “public-relations stunt” to smear her as an increasingly bitter dispute over the late Black Panther star’s multimillion-dollar estate moves through the courts.
Taylor Simone Ledward, the 35-year-old widow of Chadwick – who died aged 43 from colon cancer in 2020 – has responded to a petition filed in Los Angeles by his older brothers Derrick Boseman and Kevin Boseman on behalf of their parents, Leroy Boseman and Carolyn Boseman.
Derrick and Kevin are seeking to have Taylor removed as administrator of the actor’s estate, alleging she failed to complete distributions required under a 2022 probate order.
Taylor denies the allegations and says all assets have been distributed apart from one account affected by the brothers’ own legal action.
In court papers obtained by US Weekly, Taylor’s lawyer Adam Streisand said: “Simone has not only complied with the Order, but as a product solely of her own extraordinary generosity, she has gone well beyond what was required of her.”
The filing added: “Simone’s generosity has been both financial and collaborative. She has always included the Boseman family in her efforts to ensure Chadwick’s memory would endure and flourish long after her husband’s tragic and untimely death.
“This is how the family repays her: a Petition replete with falsehoods under oath, purposefully used as a public-relations stunt to smear Simone in the tabloid press, not to mention the collateral damage it has caused to her husband’s legacy.”
Adam described the proceedings as a “baseless attack” on Taylor “by Chadwick’s brothers (who are not among Chadwick’s legal heirs) cloaked with authority by their ailing parents (who, along with Simone, are the rightful heirs)”.
He added: “(This lawsuit) must be denied.”
Chadwick died without a will, leaving Taylor and his parents as his legal heirs. Under the probate arrangement, Taylor was allocated 50% of the estate, with the remaining half divided equally between Leroy and Carolyn.
Derrick and Kevin alleged in their July petition the estate had still not been fully distributed nearly four years after the 2022 order.
Taylor’s response says she has distributed all the estate’s assets apart from a $300,000 IRA she claims could not be distributed because of earlier legal action by Derrick and Kevin.
The filing lists assets including $151,558 in a Bank of America account, another bank account containing $241,180.75, a $40,000 life insurance policy and 100 shares in Chadwick Boseman Inc valued at $3,396,969.
It also states Taylor personally gave more than $300,000 to Derrick’s four children.
Taylor also denied claims assets had been mishandled.
Her filing said: “To be clear, no Estate asset has been lost, wasted, or mismanaged.”
It continued: “Simone has administered the Estate transparently and in consultation with Petitioners at every meaningful step, without any requirement or obligation to do so, and will distribute the funds from the CNB IRA that CNB held back only because Petitioners demanded it. Petitioners’ claims of concealment and mismanagement do not withstand scrutiny.”
The papers also say Chadwick’s estate has received approximately $300,000 in SAG-AFTRA residual payments since his death, with 25% allocated to each of his parents and 50% to Taylor.
According to Taylor’s filing, $75,000 was distributed to both Derrick and Kevin at their parents’ request for the period covering 2020 to 2024.
The dispute comes during renewed attention on Chadwick’s artistic legacy following the UK premiere of Deep Azure, the play he wrote in 2005.
The production ran at the Sam Wanamaker Playhouse at Shakespeare’s Globe in London earlier this year and was extended by two weeks after opening.
Directed by Tristan Fynn-Aiduenu, it follows a woman dealing with the police killing of her fiancé and was inspired by the killing of Chadwick’s friend Prince Jones.
Taylor has also established the Chadwick Boseman Foundation for the Arts and, according to her court filing, secured a documentary deal concerning her husband’s legacy.
Chadwick became an international star playing T’Challa in Marvel’s Black Panther, having first appeared as the character in Captain America: Civil War. He reprised the role in Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers: Endgame.
His other acclaimed performances included baseball player Jackie Robinson in 42, singer James Brown in Get on Up and lawyer and future US supreme court justice Thurgood Marshall in Marshall.
His final film performance in Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom, opposite Viola Davis, earned him a posthumous Academy Award nomination for best actor.
Chadwick Boseman’s widow slams brothers’ ‘public-relations stunt’
