Priscilla Presley — fresh off her settlement with granddaughter Riley Keough that granted her a $1 million lump-sum payment, $100,000 annual salary, and burial rights near Elvis at Graceland — is gearing up for a new court showdown over a lawsuit that claims she was on the brink of “insolvency” two years ago when she partnered with a Florida woman she later shunned.
The partner, memorabilia auctioneer Brigitte Kruse, is now suing Priscilla Presley for breach of contract, alleging the world-famous actress and author walked away from their deal after her circumstances changed in the wake of daughter Lisa Marie Presley’s untimely death. This week, a Florida judge scheduled a May 15 evidentiary hearing in the case, setting the stage for Kruse and Presley to battle in open court over merits of the dispute and whether Presley can even be sued in the Sunshine State.
The underlying lawsuit, filed in October and first reported Wednesday by The Daily Beast, alleges Presley “approached” Kruse in 2022 to assume management of her personal and business affairs. The women purportedly knew each other through “numerous” prior Elvis memorabilia auctions, and Kruse accepted the role working for Presley, even though it meant giving up her auction business to devote herself full-time to the new endeavor, her lawsuit states.
“Immediately upon taking the role, it became clear that Priscilla’s financial position was far worse than expected. Priscilla was approximately 60 days from insolvency. Additionally, Priscilla was faced with nearly $700,000 in unpaid tax debt, with no promise of future income,” the lawsuit filed in Orange County, Florida, and obtained by Rolling Stone states.
Kruse alleges she and another partner, Kevin Fialko, “sprang into action to prevent Priscilla’s financial ruin and public embarrassment.” Kruse says she hired “professionals to keep creditors at bay” and arranged engagements where Presley could capitalize on Sofia Coppola’s film adaptation of her memoir Elvis and Me. Presley eventually appointed Kruse as co-trustee of her trust, granted her general and healthcare powers of attorney, and signed a contract — on video — to create their company, Priscilla Presley Partners (PPP), on January 8, 2023, giving it powers to own, exploit, and protect Priscilla Presley’s name, image, and likeness, according to the lawsuit.
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Less than a week after the signing, Presley’s only child with Elvis, Lisa Marie Presley, died unexpectedly at the age of 54. The shocking death sent PPP’s “ability” to work with Presley “into a tailspin,” the lawsuit states. The death also led to Presley’s high-profile dispute over her daughter Lisa Marie’s trust and eventual settlement with her granddaughter in May 2023. Kruse claims that after Presley’s fortunes changed, Kruse was contacted in June 2023 by Keya Morgan, a rival manager who “professed to be a friend of Priscilla.” Morgan previously made headlines as he battled — and beat — claims he misappropriated funds while managing Stan Lee shortly before the Marvel founder’s death.
The lawsuit alleges Morgan put Kruse in contact with lawyer Michael Froch, who later sent her a cease and desist letter on Aug. 25, 2023, demanding she halt all activity on behalf of Presley. The letter also accused Kruse of “misconduct,” including an alleged attempted sale of Presley’s home.
“Since Froch’s letter, Priscilla cut off all communication with Kruse and all other individuals associated with PPP,” the lawsuit alleges. In her filings, Kruse includes a photo showing Presley with Morgan at the Venice Film Festival on Sept. 4, 2023, where Presley reportedly received a seven-minute standing ovation. Attempts to reach lawyers for Kruse were not immediately successful Wednesday.
“The claims made against Priscilla Presley in the lawsuit are completely without merit,” Presley’s lawyer Marty Singer wrote in an email to Rolling Stone. “My client made significant claims against PPP and its principals Brigitte Kruse and Kevin Fialko for misappropriating hundreds of thousands of dollars long before this specious lawsuit was filed. We fully anticipate that my client will be vindicated and obtain a judgment against them.”
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Presley, 78, responded to the lawsuit by claiming she barely set foot in Florida and can’t be sued in that state considering she lives in California. She also claims that because she only owned a 49 percent share of PPP, she owed it no fiduciary duty. “Ms. Presley’s only relevant contacts with the state of Florida come from the two trips she made to Florida at Ms. Kruse’s request and her minority membership interest in a Delaware limited liability company. The rest of the parties’ history, relationship and relevant activities all took place in California or other states,” Presley’s motion to dismiss the lawsuit states.
Kruse responded to the motion by claiming Presley requested to travel to Florida in January 2023 because Presley wanted to meet former president Donald Trump, view a property, and investigate options for a potential move to the state.
“Kruse was able to arrange that meeting. Immediately after that meeting, (Presley) requested information from former President Trump’s assistant, Eliza Thurston, regarding Mr. Trump’s realtor, for additional assistance in locating property in the Palm Beach area because, again, (Presley) was in the process of moving to Florida,” Kruse states in her response filing. “The day after meeting former President Trump, (Presley) sat in Florida, and formed PPP.”
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In her filings, Kruse states she “expended significant capital” developing projects for Presley and is owed compensation. She says without the court’s intervention, PPP will “suffer irreparable harm.”
Among the big-ticket memorabilia that Kruse previously handled through GWS Auctions was a guitar that Jimi Hendrix played in the early Sixties. It sold for $216,000, nearly four times its auction estimate, in August 2020.