On Monday (June 12), Riley Keough filed a petition to have the courts approve the settlement she and her grandmother, Priscilla Presley, signed last month – which would see Riley act as the sole trustee of her mother’s (Lisa Marie Presley) estate, while Priscilla would serve as a ‘Special Advisor to the Trust.’
Riley’s twin sisters, Harper and Finley Lockwood, are also set to benefit from the trust as beneficiaries. In addition to serving as the sole trustee of her mother’s trust, Riley will serve as trustee of the sub-trusts for her sisters, and won’t charge for her services as trustee – unlike Priscilla, who would’ve charged them.
The petition also confirmed that Riley plans to invest the money ‘in a manner consistent with the needs of the beneficiaries, and not influenced by the desire of a Trustee,’ according to her lawyer, Justin Gold – who also claims the beneficiaries will save money since Riley isn’t charging for her services as trustee.
As for Priscilla Presley, she’ll be paid a monthly salary for her role as ‘Special Advisor to the Trust’ and is also receiving a one-time lump sum from the living trust – believed to be $1 million, plus $400,000 in legal fees ($1.4 million total). The 78-year-old was officially removed as a trustee on May 11 after a legal battle.
Not only that, but Priscilla was named trustee of the sub-trust for her son, Navarone Garibaldi – who is set to receive 1/9 of the trust. Garibaldi is Priscilla’s son and Lisa Marie’s half-brother. H was born on March 1, 1987 to Priscilla and Marco Garibaldi and currently performs in the rock group Them Guns.
And while Riley Keough will be in charge of Graceland – her grandfather’s (Elvis Presley) estate, which now serves as a museum – she’s allowing Priscilla to be buried on the property near the Meditation Garden. She won’t be buried next to Elvis, but she’ll be in the same vicinity as the rest of her family.
Outside of Elvis Presley, others who are buried at the Meditation Garden include his father, Vernon Presley, his mother, Gladys Presley, his daughter, Lisa Marie Presley, and his grandson, Benjamin Keough. Lisa Marie was the most recent one buried there, being laid to rest in late-January 2023.
Recapping the Legal Battle Between Riley Keough and Priscilla Presley
On January 12, 2023, the Presley family was forced to mourn the death of Lisa Marie Presley – the only daughter of Elvis Presley. A service was held for her on January 22, but drama started to grow three days later when Priscilla Presley filed a petition to have her reinstated as a trustee to Lisa Marie’s living trust.
The petition questioned the authenticity of a 2016 amendment that removed Priscilla as a trustee and replaced her with Lisa Marie’s four children – Riley Keough, Benjamin Keough (who died by suicide in 2020), Harper Lockwood, and Finley Lockwood. Priscilla didn’t know about the amendment until after Lisa Marie died.
Over the next few months, Priscilla Presley and Riley Keough were engaged in a back-and-forth legal battle that tended to get nasty at times – though both sides claim to have maintained a professional attitude towards one another. It’s exactly what a family doesn’t need during a difficult time like this.
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The two sides eventually came to an agreement – as described above – and claim their family is now stronger than ever. “As a family, we are pleased that we resolved this together. My family and I hope that everyone will grant us the privacy we have needed to properly grieve Lisa Marie and spend personal time together,” Priscilla said.