Details of Joan Rivers' will was revealed after filings were processed in Manhattan Surrogate's Court today, according to a report from ABC News.
Joan's daughter Melissa Rivers was named as co-executor, along with former business manager Michael Karlin, and interior designer Robert Higdon. The will specified that Rivers' assets were to be managed through a confidential trust, which effectively blocks detailed information regarding the amounts involved and how the funds will be divided.
What is known thoug is that the late comedienne had allocated up to an estimated $150 million of her fortune to several charities, as well as family members.
Melissa Rivers is set to inherit "all tangible personal property" of her mother's, including an Upper East Side condo worth $35 million, plus $75 million in cash, according to Page Six. Joan's grandson, Cooper, is also expected to receive an undisclosed amount as his own inheritance, as well as nephew Andrew Waxler and niece Caroline Waxler.
Joan's will had left instructions for assets to be allocated to charities that included California's Guide Dogs for the Blind, the Simon Wiesenthal Center, the Jewish Home and Hospital Federation of Manhattan, the Jewish Guild for the Blind in Manhattan, and the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation, reports E! Online.
Other beneficiaries of the will to receive undisclosed amounts were Rivers' assistants Sabrina Miller and Jocelyn Pickett, as well as her publicist, Scott Currie. Additional information says Joan Rivers' will had been signed on November 16, 2011, and contains provisions that would disinherit any beneficiary who "tries to challenge" the will or the trust.
There was also a section in the will that mentioned possible legal action to be made against the Yorkville Endoscopy Clinic. According to Barbara Ross of the NY Daily News, the filing of the will now makes it possible for Melissa Rivers to "proceed with plans for a wrongful death suit" against Yorkville Clinic.
Joan Rivers had gone into cardiac arrest on August 28 during a procedure at the clinic. The New York State Health Department had investigated the clinic and found it "deficient" in four categories.
"As any of us would be, Ms. Rivers is outraged by the misconduct and mismanagement now shown to have occurred before, during and after the procedure," attorneys Jeffrey B. Bloom and Ben Rubinowitz had stated last month. "Moving forward, Ms. Rivers will direct her efforts towards ensuring that what happened to her mother will not occur again with any other patient."
