According to a report by the New York Times on Wednesday, media mogul Rupert Murdoch is engaged in a legal battle with his three children to ensure his eldest son and successor, Lachlan Murdoch, continues to manage his media empire.
The report states that Murdoch is trying to increase Lachlan's voting power within the Murdoch family trust to secure a majority vote and ward off challenges from other siblings. The report cited a sealed court document.
The family trust, based in Reno, Nevada, holds the family’s shares in Murdoch’s vast network of television stations and newspapers through News Corp and Fox Corp.
Lachlan Murdoch is the chairman of News Corp, whose publications include The Wall Street Journal and The Sun. He is also the chairman and CEO of Fox Corp.
Currently, the trust has eight votes: four controlled by Murdoch and the remaining four by his children from his first two marriages. Murdoch's two youngest daughters, Chloe and Grace, from his third marriage to Wendi Deng, do not have voting rights in the trust.
In court, Murdoch argued that having Lachlan manage the company without interference from his politically more moderate siblings—James, Elisabeth, and Prudence—would help maintain its conservative editorial stance, thus protecting the business interests of all heirs.
