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Aretha Franklin Died With $1 Million in Uncashed Checks

Franklin
Aretha Franklin. (Matthew Jordan Smith)
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DETROIT (CelebrityAccess) – Aretha Franklin had almost of $1 million in uncashed checks in her possession at the time of her death, according to newly filed court papers. The checks were reportedly discovered during an inventory of Franklin’s possessions, which took place following her death.

The inventory was conducted in connection to the ongoing inheritance dispute between Franklin’s four children and her niece Sabrina Owens, who is currently the personal representative of the late Queen of Soul’s estate.

It was originally believed that Franklin, who died on August 16, 2018, at the age of 76, left no will. However, months later three handwritten wills – two from 2010 and one from 2014 – were found inside her home. The discovery of the wills – which are currently under court-ordered review by a handwriting expert – could change the distribution of Franklin’s assets if they are found to be authentic. Meanwhile, the new checks add yet another layer to the already highly publicized case since it took nearly a year for them to be found and added into Franklin’s belongings.

According to the newly filed court documents, Franklin had a check for $702,711.90 from Sound Exchange and Screen Writers Guild as well as uncashed checks to her publishing company, Springtime Publishing, from EMI, BMI, Carlin Music and Feel Good Films in the amount of $285,944.27. In total, $988,656.17 in uncashed checks were found. 

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