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The daughters of late music legend Tony Bennett are doubling down on their accusations that their brother, Danny, allegedly mismanaged their father’s funds and their family trust.
Antonia and Johanna Bennett have been locked in a legal battle with their brother since June, a year after Tony’s passing in July 2023 at the age of 96.
Beneficiaries of The Tony Bennett 1994 Family Trust, the sisters sued Danny – the fund’s sole trustee – over assets they alleged were unaccounted for after their father’s death.
Antonia and Johanna’s brother Dae is also listed as a beneficiary.
Danny submitted a motion in November seeking to have the case transferred to the surrogate’s court or dismissed. However, on January 3, Antonia and Johanna filed a motion urging the court to reject Danny’s request. They voiced “serious concerns” about what they claim as Danny’s “mismanagement” of his fiduciary duties, according to court documents viewed by The Post.
“Danny acted in multiple, conflicting fiduciary capacities for an extended period prior to Tony’s death and took (for himself and his children) significant funds from the Family Trust,” the sisters allege in the filing.
“Moreover, as publicized by Danny to various media outlets, at some point prior to Tony’s death, Tony entered a phase of diminished capacity, which means Tony was no longer able to act as co-Trustee, leaving Danny to serve as sole Trustee of the Family Trust with no oversight.”
Antonia and Johanna also insist they have a right to an account of Danny’s handling of their father’s finances before and after the singer passed, claiming there was a “lack of transparency” and alleging Danny was acting unsupervised.
“[Tony] expressed a clear intention and direction in his estate plans that all four of his children be treated equally,” the sisters’ filing reads.
Antonia and Johanna also claim that Danny issued checks from the trust to himself “as he saw fit.” They point to a series of alleged transactions in 2022, claiming he made“multiple gifts to himself” totaling $200,700. Additionally, they allege that Danny took monthly advances of $50,000 starting in 2021 on top of his business management commission, even though the payments were not formally approved until 2022.
The controversy also involves a 2022 deal where Danny facilitated the sale of Tony’s assets to the company Iconoclast. Although Danny claimed that Tony was “in financial trouble” at the time, the sisters argue that financial records show their father “still had millions of dollars.”
They allege that Danny continued to “make gifts to himself and his children with Family Trust assets,” including nearly $2.6 million in commissions to his company, RPM Productions. In contrast, Antonia and Johanna claim they have each only received $245,000 from the trust.
“Without more information about Tony’s income, it is unclear whether the payments Danny was making to himself exceed what was contractually owed to him,” Antonia and Johanna’s filing states.
“Statements and management agreements provided by Danny indicate that commissions paid to [his company, RPM Productions] appear to have been much higher than they should have been based on Tony’s income.”
The Post has reached out to Danny’s lawyer for comment.
Tony Bennett established the trust in 1994, with Danny and Dae initially named co-trustees. After amending the trust in 2008, Tony and Danny became the sole trustees.
English (US)