Leonard Cohen’s children are fighting for control of the late singer-songwriter’s assets, it has been revealed.
According to The New York Post, Adam Cohen, 50, and Lorca Cohen, 48, are trying to remove lawyer Robert Kory from the Leonard Cohen Family Trust. He was appointed by the Montreal-born “Hallelujah” singer before his death to supervise royalties.
Cohen died in November 2016 at 82.
In a court filing, his children allege that their father “came to appreciate in his waning days that he had made a grave error by allowing Kory to insinuate himself into Leonard’s affairs and take control over virtually every aspect of Leonard’s finances and legacy.”
Adam Cohen, pictured in 2017. John R. Kennedy / iHeartRadio.ca
Adam and Lorca claim Kory has kept them in the dark about efforts to monetize their father’s estate, including the exhibit “Everybody Knows” at Toronto’s Art Gallery of Ontario.
They allege that Kory forged documents in 2005 to gain control of Cohen’s assets, which are valued at $48 million U.S., according to court documents.
Lawyer Adam Streisand, who is representing Cohen’s children, told the Post that a page in the trust document signed by Cohen before his death designates Adam, Lorca and Cohen’s former lover Anjani Thomas as trustees after his death – but it was “swapped out” with a page designating Kory as trustee.
But, in a letter filed with the court, lawyer Reeve Chudd said Cohen instructed him to make Kory the trustee because the singer “was concerned that his children didn’t have a sufficiently comfortable relationship to work together upon the complexities of the artist’s estate.” Chudd said Adam and Lorca were told about the change at a meeting in September 2015.
Kory has denied any wrongdoing and insists he has made efforts to keep Adam and Lorca apprised through monthly statements.
Kory, Chudd and the Cohens declined the Post’s requests for comment.