Murdoch Family Power Struggle Gets Heated as Nevada Court Battle Begins

The man who built the machine that arguably radicalized American conservatism is now watching it eat his own family alive. Rupert Murdoch, 93, the architect of a media empire that stretches from the Fox News studios in Manhattan to the newsrooms of The Wall Street Journal and across three continents, has landed in a place no amount of dealmaking prepared him for: a Nevada probate court, fighting his own children over who gets to steer the ship after he is gone.

The dispute centers on the family trust that controls voting rights in both Fox Corp. and News Corp. Murdoch's six children, born across three of his five marriages, are set to inherit equal shares. But Murdoch has filed a petition to rewrite the rules and hand sole control to his eldest son, Lachlan. Three of his other children have banded together to stop him. The outcome will not just determine which Murdoch runs the company. It will decide the ideological future of one of the most powerful conservative media operations on Earth.

The trust, the heirs, and the fight nobody saw coming

Murdoch holds roughly 40% of the voting rights in both Fox Corp. and News Corp. He stepped down from their boards last year, but he did not step away from the question that has haunted his empire for decades: succession. Under the existing terms of the family trust, negotiated during his divorce from second wife Anna Murdoch Mann, four of his children -- Lachlan, Prudence, Elisabeth, and James -- share equal voting power upon their father's death.

That arrangement no longer suits Murdoch. He wants the trust rewritten so Lachlan, currently CEO of Fox and chairman of News Corp., holds the reins alone. The other three have responded by hiring lawyers and mounting a unified legal challenge in Nevada probate court. The family that once kept its internal fractures behind closed doors is now airing them before a commissioner.

Inside the courtroom

In June, Nevada probate commissioner Edmund Gorman Jr. ruled that Murdoch could proceed with altering the trust, provided he demonstrates the changes were made in good faith and serve the best interests of all heirs. Murdoch's argument is strategic rather than sentimental: he believes consolidating control under Lachlan protects the empire's value by preserving the conservative editorial direction of Fox News. He fears that if the other three siblings gain influence, that direction could shift.

Prudence, Elisabeth, and James share legal representation and are pushing back hard. They argue that the proposed changes violate the original terms of the trust and would effectively strip them of their rightful stake in the company's governance.

James has been the most vocal dissenter. He resigned from the News Corp. board in 2020, citing "disagreements over certain editorial content," and has steadily distanced himself from the family's conservative media outlets ever since. His departure came in the wake of Fox News coverage of the 2020 U.S. election that generated a cascade of litigation, including the $787.5 million settlement with Dominion Voting Systems.

Rupert Murdoch and his wife entering the courtroom through a scrum of reporters (Photo: Daily Mail)

What is actually on the line

Strip away the legal filings and the family drama, and you are left with a single, enormous question: what happens to Fox News?

The network remains a dominant force in conservative media. Cord-cutting and the streaming revolution have battered the cable landscape, but Fox's grip on live news and sports programming has insulated it from the worst of the carnage. For Murdoch, Lachlan represents continuity. In his letter to employees announcing his retirement, Murdoch made the alignment explicit, stating that he and Lachlan share a worldview and a commitment to championing free speech.

If the three opposing siblings prevail, control of the company could fracture. A more moderate editorial direction at Fox News becomes a real possibility. So does the potential sale of pieces of the empire. Either scenario would send shockwaves through American media and politics alike.

The roads this could take

The probate court will issue a recommendation on whether Murdoch can proceed with the trust modifications. If his petition is approved, Lachlan cements his position as the sole power behind Fox News and the broader Murdoch media apparatus, and the conservative editorial machine keeps running as designed. If the siblings block the revisions, they gain meaningful influence over the company's trajectory and could push it in an entirely different direction.

The losing side gets 14 days to appeal, which would send the case to the district probate judge. From there, it could climb all the way to the Nevada Supreme Court. Nobody involved expects this to end quietly.

The empire and its scars

Murdoch's biography reads like a screenplay somebody would reject for being too implausible. Born in Australia to a newspaper-owning father, he assembled one of the largest media empires in history, accumulating a fortune of $10.6 billion according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index. His holdings span Australia, the United States, and the United Kingdom. His dealmaking reached a crescendo in 2019 when he sold 21st Century Fox's entertainment assets to Disney for $71.3 billion.

But the empire carries damage. In the U.K., Murdoch's now-defunct News of the World tabloid was consumed by an illegal phone-hacking scandal that targeted celebrities, crime victims, and members of the British royal family. Fox News weathered sexual harassment allegations that brought down network head Roger Ailes. The network has faced sustained criticism for amplifying political divisiveness, and the legal fallout from its 2020 election coverage continues to reverberate.

Rupert Murdoch with sons Lachlan, left, and James at St Bride's church in London, celebrating Murdoch's wedding to Jerry Hall, March 5, 2016 (Photo: REUTERS/Peter Nicholls)

Where each heir stands

Lachlan was groomed early for the throne. He held a string of roles inside the family empire before a clash with Fox News chief Roger Ailes drove him away for nearly a decade. He returned, assumed leadership of both Fox and News Corp., and locked in his position as the chosen successor.

James once looked like a plausible heir himself. He held senior positions across the empire, including chairman of the scandal-plagued News of the World, but the phone-hacking crisis pushed him out. He later became co-CEO of 21st Century Fox, only to step away after the Disney sale. James and his wife Kathryn have since become outspoken environmental advocates, and he has made no secret of his distance from the family's conservative media identity.

Elisabeth has not worked inside the Murdoch empire in over a decade. Prudence has held several executive roles but keeps a lower public profile. Both are seen as more politically moderate than their father and Lachlan, though neither matches James for sheer willingness to say so publicly.

For now, the father-son alliance holds. Murdoch made clear in his retirement announcement that Lachlan shares his commitment to free speech and conservative values. Whether a Nevada court allows that alliance to dictate the future of the empire, or whether three dissenting heirs manage to rewrite the script, remains the most consequential media succession story of the decade.

The courtroom doors are closed. The arguments are underway. And the battle for the Murdoch empire is just getting started.