Judge Upholds Will Cutting Out Leon Hendrix

(AP) – A brother of guitar legend Jimi Hendrix had his day in court and came up empty. Last Friday, King County Superior Court Judge Jeffrey Ramsdell upheld the last will signed by Al Hendrix, who inherited the rights to his son’s music when the rock star died in 1970. The document signed by Al Hendrix before his 2002 death was challenged by a younger son, Leon. It largely benefits Janie Hendrix, Jimi’s stepsister, who runs Experience Hendrix LLC with Jimi’s cousin Robert Hendrix. “This is the Hendrixes,” Leon told reporters after the trial. “This is the family right here, you know, bloodline.” But clearly, Ramsdell said Friday, “Janie was the family member Al trusted the most.” “Al wanted to keep the Jimi Hendrix legacy in the family,” said Janie’s attorney, John Wilson. “Judge Ramsdell heard six weeks of evidence and, after all of that, vindicated Janie and Bob’s commitment to carry out Al Hendrix’s last wishes.” Leon Hendrix alleged in his lawsuit that he was unfairly written out of the will at Janie’s request. He also wanted her replaced as the company’s boss. In his opening statement in June, Leon’s lawyer, Robert Curran, portrayed Ms. Hendrix as a high-rolling globe-trotter who awarded herself low-interest loans and a bonus that exceeded her salary, and visited a high-end beauty salon 110 times in one year on a corporate credit card. Wilson said some of that money had been repaid and that a special audit will determine how much more she and Robert Hendrix should repay. But company management aside, the will makes clear Al Hendrix did not want Leon or his six children to have any involvement in the company or receive any money from it, Wilson said. Leon’s lawyer said no decision had been made on a possible appeal. A 1996 version of Al’s will would have directed 24 percent of the legacy to Leon, 38 percent to Janie and the balance to other beneficiaries. It was rewritten in 1997 to exclude Leon, whom some in the family regard as a freeloader. Curran contended the father was infirm in his old age and would sign any document a lawyer placed before him. The case is one of several that have entangled the estate. Jimi Hendrix released just three albums before he died at age 27, but he left numerous unreleased recordings. For about two decades after his death, the California attorney in charge of his legacy sold many of the copyrights. At Janie’s urging, Al Hendrix sued the lawyer in the early ’90s to regain those rights. The settlement retrieved the legacy but left Experience Hendrix in debt. Janie Hendrix contends her father did not want money paid to beneficiaries listed in his will until the debt is paid off, probably in 2010. In the seven years Janie has headed Experience Hendrix, it has brought in $45 million, compared to $38 million in the preceding decades.