LOS ANGELES (CelebrityAccess MediaWire) — Promoter AEG has withdrawn insurance claims over the 2009 death of pop star Michael Jackson, just before the start of his widely heralded comeback tour.
The announcement that AEG is backing away from the claims comes on the heals of leaked company emails that show that senior executives at AEG had signficant concerns about Jackson's health and stability shortly before his death.
However, according to Reuters, AEG's attornies denied that the leaked emails were material to the decision to drop the claim, instead saying that the company had been reimbursed by the Jackson Estate for the losses.
Jackson died in 2009 due to an overdose of a mixture of powerful anesthetic and sedative drugs prescribed by his personal doctor Conrad Murray. Murray was convicted of manslaughter over the incident late last year.
AEG had filed a claim with the tour's insurer Lloyd's of London after Jackson's death, seeking $17.5 million to cover up-front costs on the "This is It" tour that was scheduled to start in London in July 2009 but Lloyd's sued AEG, seeking a declaration that they did not owe AEG for the claim.
Attorneys in the case told a judge on Monday that they expected the lawsuit to be dropped, Reuters reported. – CelebrityAccess Staff Writers
