Five of the Buss siblings have continued their legal fight against their sister, Lakers acting governor Jeanie Buss, with a new 29-page filing submitted Friday to the Los Angeles Superior Court. The document, reviewed by ESPN, was filed on behalf of Joey and Janie Buss in opposition to Jeanie's petition seeking to remove them as co-trustees and void the siblings' 5-1 vote to sell the family's remaining stake in the team.
The filing argues that the trust's language unambiguously answers who had authority to decide whether the trust would continue, what event would terminate it, and what the trustees were required to do once that event occurred. It notes that a sale requires a two-thirds majority of the siblings, which they exceeded, and challenges the breadth of Jeanie's rights as co-trustee and acting governor. The filing follows a 36-page opposition submitted October 7 by all five siblings, who said they had the right to terminate the trust and sell their remaining 17.82% stake to the ownership group of Josh Kushner and Bob Iger, which agreed to buy the Lakers from Mark Walter at a $12.5 billion valuation.
Jeanie, through her lawyer Adam Streisand, filed a 97-page petition in August aimed at blocking the sale. Sources told ESPN that Kushner and Iger are expected to take control of the franchise following an NBA board of governors vote in November. The new filing contends that a 2017 court order requiring efforts to have Jeanie appointed controlling owner became moot once the vote to terminate the trust was held. It also points out that the NBA's 15% ownership requirement for a controlling owner does not appear in the original trust or the 2017 order.
The filing further argues that a sale would maximize value for all beneficiaries, including Jeanie, and cites two contractual rights secured in 2025: a put right allowing the siblings to sell at the $10 billion valuation, and a tagalong provision letting them sell at the new $12.5 billion valuation if Walter sells his interest. The siblings contend that using the tagalong provision was the more favorable economic option. The filing also argues Jeanie's contempt claim lacks merit and asks the court to dismiss her petition.
Source: ESPN NBA · Summarized by HeadlinesBriefing