O.J. Simpson Lawyer Backtracks Claims About Payment To Goldman, Brown Families

The lawyer and executer for the estate of O.J. Simpson is backtracking claims he made recently about money owed to the families of Ronald Goldman and Nicole Brown Simpson.

Simpson Lawyer Originally Said Goldman Family Would Get 'Nothing'

Malcolm LaVergne initially commented, following the death of the acquitted murderer and NFL player, that the Goldman family wouldn’t receive payment from Simpson’s estate. Simpson died at the age of 76 on April 10 after a battle with prostate cancer.

“‘It’s my hope that the Goldmans get zero, nothing. Them specifically. And I will do everything in my capacity as the executor or personal representative to try and ensure that they get nothing,’” he told the Las Vegas Review Journal in a story published on April 12.

Simpson Lawyer Backtracks Original Claims

Now, it appears he’s had a change of heart.

“‘I can tell you in advance, Fred Goldman’s claim will be accepted. And his claim will be handled in accordance with Nevada law,” LaVergne told The Hollywood Reporter, now saying his claims were against the Goldman family lawyers, not the Goldman family themselves.

“‘Within an hour of knowing that O.J. died, he started talking s---. My advocate instinct is was, ‘Oh, you’re gonna keep s------ on him even after he’s dead? Fine, you know? You get nothing.’ And so, those were my remarks then. But I backtracked, and they were pretty harsh remarks. And now I’m going in the other direction,’” LaVergne told THR.

Goldman Family Claims They Haven't Received 'A Penny' From Simpson

In a case that became known as the “trial of the century,” Simpson was acquitted in 1995 of the murders of ex-wife Brown Simpson and her friend, Goldman. But in 1997, Simpson was found liable for their deaths in a civil suit filed by Goldman’s father, Fred Goldman.

But according to Fred, he’s never received a penny from Simpson.

Fred Goldman told THR in 2022 that his family has not received any money from Simpson since the civil trial verdict.

“‘It’s a ridiculous number, none of which has ever appeared. [Simpson] never paid one single penny. Anything that we were able to take was through our own efforts of taking things away from him.’ The tens of millions owed to the Goldmans and Browns have a judgment lien and are ‘secured debt,’ which will be paid prior to those to creditors of Simpson holding unsecured debt.”

People magazine reports that Fred Goldman’s attorney, David Cook, estimates that Simpson owed the family more than $100 million from the civil suit ruling.

Simpson Lawyer Cites 'Learning Curve' In Defense Of Original Comments

People also confirms reports that LaVergne is backtracking his original claim that the Goldman family will receive nothing from Simpson’s estate.

“‘I've backtracked from that since, because you've got to understand, there's a learning curve to everything. And I was an advocate for Mr. Simpson so long, and he was able to live a really great last seven years of his life out because I was his attorney and advocate for all that time, but now my attorney hat is off, and my executor hat is on,” he told People.

LaVergne has been Simpson’s attorney since 2009 and was named executor of his estate prior to Simpson’s passing. THR reports that the Goldman and Brown families are owed a “a payout of the $33.5 million judgment.” That figure has risen since the 1997 civil suit, with LaVergne estimating it closer to $200 million today.

Simpson's Family Will Make Decisions Based On 'What They Know Their Father Would Want'

According to THR, Simpson’s assets have been “placed into a trust and will now be subject to a probate process in court.”

“The NFL Hall of Famer is survived by his four adult children — Arnelle, 55, and Jason, 54, with his first wife, Marguerite, and Sydney, 35, and Justin, 33, with Brown. LaVergne said that he is signing off on decisions when the four reach a consensus based on what they know their father would want."