James Tupper values Anne Heche's estate at $2M

2022-10-24

EXCLUSIVE: Anne Heche’s ex James Tupper claims the late actress’s estate is worth $2MILLION – five times more than her son Homer’s original valuation – and that the former couple’s son Atlas has been locked out of her home

In a new petition for probate filed last week, James Tupper challenged Homer Heche Laffoon’s appraisal of his mother’s estate of $400,000
Filings obtained by DailyMail.com show Tupper instead valued Heche’s personal property at $1.6M and listed the annual income from that property at $400,000
Tupper has also claim his 13-year-old son with Heche, Atlas, has been locked out of her home as grounds to stop him from being appointed Administrator
The Canadian actor is also asking for Britney Spears’s former conservator, Jodi Pais Montgomery, to be appointed the ‘neutral’ administrator
It comes after an October 11 court hearing where an LA judge denied Tupper’s petition to be appointed legal guardian of Atlas
Judge Lee Bogdanoff also indicated at the time that he would ‘probably’ grant Heche’s older son Homer’s petition to be made permanent executor
Homer Heche Laffoon had filed documents claiming the late actress only had $400,000 at the time of her death
The 20-year-old provided a fairly vague list of what his mother owned, citing a ‘few modest banks accounts’ and ‘royalty payments and other income’

Anne Heche’s ex-partner James Tupper is claiming the late actress’s estate is actually worth $2million – five times more than her son’s original valuation of her property.

In a new petition for probate filed last week, Tupper, who is currently locked in a legal battle with Heche’s 20-year-old son Homer Heche Laffoon, challenged her older son’s $400,000 estimated appraisal of his mother’s estate.

Tupper, 57, instead valued Heche’s personal property at $1.6million and listed the annual gross income from that property at $400,000, documents obtained by DailyMail.com reveal.

The Canadian actor also cited Homer’s alleged failure to communicate with his younger brother Atlas – Tupper’s 13-year-old son with Heche – and claims he locked the boy out of Heche’s home.

He is also asking for Britney Spears’s former conservator, Jodi Pais Montgomery, to be appointed the ‘neutral’ administrator.

The move comes just a few days after DailyMail.com reported Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Lee Bogdanoff had rejected Tupper’s petition to be made legal guardian of his and Heche’s 13-year-old son Atlas.

During the October 11 hearing, the judge also warned Tupper he was also likely to lose the battle over her estate.

Filings obtained by DailyMail.com show Anne Heche’s ex-partner James Tupper valued her personal property at $2million – five times her son’s original appraisal

The first court hearing for Anne Heche’s estate was held Tuesday October 11 at Los Angeles Superior Court. Her eldest son Homer Heche Laffoon (pictured right with Heche and younger son Atlas) was appointed temporary administrator over her estate last month

In Tupper’s petition for probate obtained by DailyMail.com, the actor said Heche’s personal property was worth $1.6M and listed the annual income from that property at $400,000

At the moment, Homer is executor of Heche’s property and has previously argued that he is more likely to act in his brother Atlas’s interests as both of the sons ‘share the common goal of administering the estate as efficiently as possible.

But Tupper has continued to challenge Homer’s appointment, now claiming ‘fraudulent and/or intentional failures to provide notice and related misrepresentations’ are grounds to deny him from serving as the administrator.

In his filing, he also cites Homer’s alleged failure to communicate with Atlas and locking Atlas out of Heche’s home as grounds to stop him from being appointed Administrator.

Tupper alleges that the actions Homer has taken demonstrate a hostile and bias attitude against Atlas, and a neutral fiduciary is best suited to become the permanent administrator of Heche’s estate.

The Big Little Lies star had filed for legal guardianship – which would have made him responsible for protecting Atlas’s interests in court.

Upon hearing the ruling earlier this month, Tupper shook his head as he stood in court with his hands stuffed into his blue jeans.

Earlier this month, a Los Angeles judge denied James Tupper’s petition to be appointed legal guardian of 13-year-old Atlas Heche Tupper(pictured) – his only son with late actress Anne Heche

In a court hearing on October 11, the Canadian actor, 57, lost his bid to be made ‘guardian ad litem’ of Atlas – his 13-year-old son with Anne Heche

But the gesture of frustration angered Judge Bogdanoff, who snapped at him: ‘Don’t you shake your head at me – and take your hands out of your pockets!’

Tupper sheepishly complied, telling the judge: ‘I don’t think his (Atlas) older brother (Homer) is going to look after his interests.

‘He is treating him like an enemy. Their relationship is going to be destroyed forever.’

When Tupper’s attorney, Christopher Johnson complained that Homer was blocking Atlas’s access to the apartment he and his mother shared to pick up his belongings, Judge Bogdanoff ordered that the young boy to be able to ‘get into the apartment and get his stuff as quickly as possible.’

Addressing her decision the judge said: ‘The brothers have an equal interest in the estate…I’m not seeing a reason to grant a GAL (guardian ad litem) because he (Atlas) and his brother have the same interest in the estate.’

Judge Bogdanoff also questioned why Tupper is claiming that Homer is ‘not qualified’ to be named permanent administrator to Heche’s estate.

‘What is the basis to object?’ asked the judge. ‘We are not here to pick the best person. In California you can be an illiterate and be an administrator.’

He also warned Tupper that making a formal objection to the impending decision to make Homer permanent administrator would likely be a ‘waste of time.’

Yet, Bogdanoff still gave Tupper’s attorney, Johnson, until October 20 to file an objection and scheduled another hearing on November 30.

Homer, 20, has been locked in a legal battle with his mother’s ex James Tupper (right) who has claimed she appointed him executor in a will she emailed him in 2011

Tupper, 57, last week filed to be appointed ‘guardian ad litem’ over his 13-year-old son. That would make him responsible for protecting Atlas’s interests in court hearings

The hearing comes after new documents filed in court earlier revealed that the late actress’s wealth amounted to a fraction of the millions she was believed to be worth.

Homer Heche Laffoon, 20 – Heche’s son with ex-husband Coleman Laffoon – said he estimated the value of his all his mother’s personal property to be approximately $400,000 total, according to filings obtained by DailyMail.com.

He said he expects another $400,000 annually from royalties and residuals.

Homer also revealed Heche lived in an apartment and did not own a house.

Meanwhile, Tupper maintains that she appointed him executor of her estate in a ‘will’ she emailed to him in 2011.

But Homer insists that the email is not valid because it’s not signed and that his mother had no will when she died two months ago at age 53.

He also blasted a petition last week to be named legal guardian of Atlas as a ‘conflict of interest’ and an attempt to manipulate him and his half brother to seize control of their mother’s belongings.

The fight for control of Heche’s estate was scheduled for its first hearing on October 11 at Los Angeles Superior Court.

In legal documents filed ahead of the hearing by Homer, whom the court appointed last month as temporary administrator of the estate, he provides a fairly vague list of what his mother owned at the time of her death:

A few modest banks accounts;
Royalty payments and other income;
A corporation in which (Heche) was the sole shareholder (used for projects in development and business functions related to her career in film, including a modest bank account and royalty payments);
An LLC membership interest related to her podcast;
Tangible personal property of unknown value;
Heche’s interest in the future profits from her forthcoming book (Call Me Anne, due to be published early next year);
Heche’s claims for damages against Mr. Tupper stemming from Mr. Tupper’s breach of contractual obligations related to their co-owned real properties that have since been sold.’

Homer said his ‘best estimate on the value of all (his mother’s) personal property is $400,000. The probable value of the annual income from all the estate’s property is approximately $400,000.’

He added that Heche ‘did not have any interest in real property at the time of her death.’

The movie star, best known for roles in Donnie Brasco, Volcano, and Wag the Dog and her three-year-relationship with Ellen DeGeneres, died days after slamming her Mini Cooper into a house in Los Angeles, causing an explosion, on August 5.

Blood tests showed that she had cocaine and fentanyl in her system when the high-speed crash occurred, but officials confirmed that she had not been drinking alcohol – despite being pictured earlier with a vodka bottle in her cupholder.

Tupper, who was in a relationship with Heche from 2007 to 2018, is the father of her younger son Atlas, 13 (pictured in 2012) while Homer is the son of Heche’s ex Coleman Laffoon

Homer (pictured in 2012) has previously claimed Tupper has ‘potential and actual conflicts of interest’ with the younger boy – his own son he shares with Heche, Atlas Heche Tupper, 13

Tupper claims the 2011 email proves that he should be in charge of the estate. ‘FYI in case I die tomorrow and anyone asks,’ Heche’s email begins. ‘My wishes are that all of my assets go to the control of Mr. James Tupper to be used to raise my children and then given to the children’

She was left badly burned and in a coma. Heche’s life support machine was turned off on August 14, and she was cremated on August 18.

A coroner ruled on August 17 that she died from inhalation injury and burns, and the death was ruled an accident.

The mother-of-two also had a fractured sternum caused by ‘blunt trauma,’ according to information on the website of the Los Angeles County Medical Examiner-Coroner.

Homer, the product of Heche’s eight-year marriage to cameraman Coleman Laffoon, is suspicious of Tupper’s motives for applying to be appointed ‘guardian ad litem’ over his 13-year-old son as it would make him responsible for protecting Atlas’s interests in court.

And he slammed Tupper for claiming he wanted to ‘preserve family harmony and a healthy, brotherly relationship’ between Heche’s two sons.

‘Mr. Tupper gives no support or context for these claims,’ Homer’s lawyers wrote. ‘Mr. Laffoon can confirm for the court that there is no disharmony’ between them.

Tupper is objecting to Homer petition to continue as administrator of Heche’s estate, and instead wants an independent administrator.

He claims that Homer ‘is not suitable’ to run the estate because he is too young, unemployed, and was estranged from his mother at the time of her death.

Tupper said that the two half-brothers have not had any contact since the day Heche died.

And he also accused Homer of changing the locks on the apartment Heche shared with Atlas, allegedly preventing the younger brother from retrieving his belongings.

But Homer hit back in his new filing saying that he had arranged for Atlas’s laptop and clothes to be retrieved from the apartment but Tupper hadn’t picked them up.

Home called Tupper’s claims ‘unfounded personal attacks’ and ‘frivolous legal claims.’

In new court documents obtained by DailyMail.com, Homer said his ‘best estimate on the value of all of [Heche’s] personal property is $400,000 plus an annual income from that property at another $400,000

Tupper is objecting to Homer petition to continue as administrator of Heche’s estate, and instead wants an independent administrator

He went on to say Tupper is manipulating him and his half brother to grab control of their mother’s estate.

Homer also claimed Tupper is keeping him away from Atlas by controlling the teenager’s phone.

Last month, DailyMail.com revealed a 2011 email Heche sent to Tupper in whic she named him executor of her estate. The email was included in Tupper’s legal filing as he battles Homer for control.

But Homer fought back in a filing last week, claiming that the email is not a legally recognized will because Heche did not sign the document.

‘Mr. Tupper repeatedly refers to the email as a ”will” however – as a matter of law – the email does not qualify as either a holographic will or formal witnessed will,’ Laffoon’s filing states.

‘The email was not signed by [Heche] and does not have two witnesses who signed the document during [her] lifetime.’

Homer says his mother failed to leave behind a will when she tragically died.

‘Without a will, there can be no nomination of an executor,’ Laffoon stated, adding that he is ‘legally entitled to appointment as administrator.’

However, Tupper claims that Heche’s email from January 25, 2011 makes it clear that she wanted all assets to be controlled by him.

The email from Heche has the subject line ‘WILL’ and is addressed to Tupper and copied to attorneys Kevin Yorn and Melodie Moore.

‘My wishes are that all of my assets go to the control of Mr. James Tupper to be used to raise my children and then given to the children,’ the email reads.

It says that her assets will be divided equally among her two sons and that their portions should be given to them when they turn 25 years old.

Heche died days after slamming her Mini Cooper into a house in Los Angeles, causing an explosion, on August 5

The actress was left badly burned and in a coma. Heche’s life support machine was turned off on August 14, and she was cremated on August 18

In the event that her two sons and Tupper all pass, Heche turned her assets over to her nephew Eliot Bergman, to be divided equally among her nieces and nephews.

‘May this go into my records as my word until further papers are drawn up,’ Heche ends the email.

It appears no further paperwork was ever filed.

Published accounts have estimated Heche’s wealth at around $4million.

In 2021, it was reported that she was selling her cottage in the Silver Lake area of Los Angeles for around $2million with co-star and ex-partner Thomas Jane.

It was also previously reported that she owned another home in the Hancock Park-Wilshire area of Los Angeles – a mansion priced at around $4million.

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