O.J. Simpson‘s estate has finally agreed to pay close to $58 million to the father of murdered waiter, Ron Goldman, 31 years after the young man was killed alongside the disgraced NFL star’s wife, Nicole Brown Simpson.
Nicole and Ron were found stabbed to death in the driveway of Nicole’s condo building shortly after midnight on June 13, 1994, and suspicion soon fell on Simpson—who was ultimately arrested and charged with the killings following a highly publicized police chase down a Los Angeles freeway on June 17.
Although Simpson—who died in April 2024 following a battle with cancer—was found not guilty of the murders of his estranged spouse and her friend, Ron, after a high-profile trial. He was found liable in a wrongful death suit filed by the murdered parties’ parents in civil court in 1996.
At the time, Simpson was ordered to pay $33.5 million in compensatory and punitive damages to the families of Nicole and Ron.
However, Simpson filed for bankruptcy soon after this judgment was made—and Ron and Nicole’s families have been fighting to secure the full amount owed to them ever since.
Now, a major step has been taken toward settling that debt, when Malcolm LaVergne, who is acting as the executor of Simpson’s estate, accepted a creditor claim filed by Ron’s father, Fred Goldman, for $57,997,858.12, “plus judgment interest on the approved amount.”
Fred had initially requested more than $117 million; however, LaVergne told TMZ that he believed this was an inaccurate calculation of the interest owed, adding that the updated number had been reached after negotiations with the claimant.
LaVergne added that he will work with the court to award the Goldman family a fee that will help them with the cost of managing the estate.
He revealed that the estate is planning on auctioning off items that belonged to Simpson in a bid to raise the necessary funds—although he claimed that several of the higher-value pieces have been stolen.
The executor noted that the he has declined other claims, having only accepted those from Goldman and the Internal Revenue Service, whose tax obligations will be prioritized.
Simpson’s estate is also facing a claim from the state of California in the amount of $636,945—however, LaVergne told TMZ that the state will have to sue if it wishes to recoup that money.
LaVergne’s decision to pay the Goldman family marks a shock twist in the case, after the executor previously claimed that he would never pay the Goldmans.
The news comes months after Simpson’s estate sued the late athlete’s younger son, Justin, amid claims he “improperly” took ownership of the $835,000 Las Vegas property where the former NFL player died.
LaVergne filed a lawsuit against Justin’s company, Primary Holdings LLC, on Jan. 6, accusing him of taking ownership of the property without permission—and demanding that he repay hundreds of thousands of dollars in equity.
Simpson lived in the home until he died from cancer at the age of 76. At this point, the lawsuit claimed, Justin moved into the property, according to NBC News.
The lawsuit stated that Justin—who is a licensed real estate agent—had helped his father to buy the property via his Primary Holdings LLC in 2022, when Simpson paid $795,000 for the three-bedroom abode, as part of a complicated ownership “agreement” that was put in place in a bid to “protect [Simpson’s] financial interests” and also “shield [the property] from creditor claims.”
The so-called “agreement” between Simpson and his younger son was intended to prevent the home from being seized in order to repay these debts.
The lawsuit further claimed that when the agreement was put in place, “it was understood” by all parties that Simpson was “intended to be the de facto owner of the … property” and that Justin’s LLC was “the owner in name only.”
The complaint stated that Simpson paid each mortgage payment and all other costs associated with maintaining the home, and that he had “final approval over the purchase” and “was directly involved in identifying, viewing and approving the Arbour Garden Property to ensure it met his specific desires and standards.”
Some of the athlete’s requirements are understood to have included “being located in a guard-gated community, located on a golf course, and being a single-story home” because of Simpson’s declining health.
Despite the terms of the original agreement, LaVergne alleges that Justin later used his knowledge of the real estate industry to “convince his ailing father to have the Arbour Garden Property placed in an entity under Justin’s exclusive control” and proceeded to move into the property immediately after Simpson’s death.
After Simpson’s passing, the lawsuit claimed that Justin “exerted enormous influence over” his dad’s finances—despite the fact that the former NFL player’s living trust stipulated that the property was to be divided among all of Simpson’s four children.
The suit stated that, despite moving into the home, Justin was refusing to repay the money that his father had invested in the property to his estate—as well as $159,000 that was put toward the down payment by unnamed “intermediaries” who helped Simpson with the purchase of the house.