A Reno judge has ordered attorneys to start preparing court documents from Rupert Murdoch’s secretive battle over control of his media empire so that files can be released to the public.
The dramatic legal fight ended in September with a settlement, but attorneys are still being pushed in court to release documents to media outlets. Probate Commissioner Edmund Gorman said during a hearing Monday that he would give attorneys 28 days to submit redacted files to the court so that documents can be released to the media.
The case has been in the public eye since 2024, when The New York Times reported that Murdoch filed a court case in Nevada to change an irrevocable trust and control which of his children would control his company upon his death. Murdoch, 95, is the businessman behind companies that control Fox News, The Wall Street Journal, the New York Post, and other outlets in Australia and Britain.
Murdoch’s attorneys had argued that ensuring only Lachlan Murdoch maintained control of the media outlets would preserve conservative editorial standards and the commercial value of the companies.
The family reached a deal in September that established control of Fox Corp. for Lachlan Murdoch. His three older siblings, Prudence MacLeod, Elisabeth Murdoch and James Murdoch, gave up any claims to control of Fox in exchange for billions of dollars worth of stocks, The Associated Press reported.
Despite the settlement, the Nevada Supreme Court proceeded with a case over the media’s access to the legal proceedings. Several media companies, including The New York Times, The Associated Press, CNN and NPR, had petitioned the Supreme Court for access to the documents.
In December, the justices ruled that the Northern Nevada court should not have sealed the case without making a ruling about why documents should be hidden from the public. When the case was sealed, the judge initially hid the existence of the case and the names of the parties from public view, according to the Supreme Court opinion.
“We conclude that the district court erred because it did not promptly evaluate whether such a compelling need was shown to overcome the public’s interest in knowing the Doe parties’ identities and the existence of the case,” the Supreme Court justices wrote in December’s opinion.
‘Important that this case get unsealed’
The opinion also referenced a 2024 decision from the Supreme Court, when the justices ruled that judges could not automatically seal Family Court hearings in Nevada without providing a reason.
Gorman held a hearing on Monday with attorneys representing members of the Murdoch family and attorneys with the media outlet Our Nevada Judges, which is one of the parties in the case seeking access to the documents.
The judge ordered attorneys representing the Murdoch family to begin redacting case documents, which he said should be sent to the court within 28 days of Monday’s hearing, according to a recording of the hearing provided by Our Nevada Judges. Gorman will then review the proposed redactions before they are released to the media.
Gorman said he would allow the attorneys to redact personal identifying information from the documents, such as signatures and proprietary information about Murdoch’s businesses.
Bob Conrad, president of the Nevada Press Association, said the case should not have been concealed from the public in the first place. Conrad also reported on Monday’s hearing for This is Reno.
“When you try to shut out the public and the media from such a high-profile case, people don’t even know what’s being argued or what’s at stake, and that’s a huge problem,” he said. “It was very important that this case get unsealed, and I think it’s long overdue.”
Judge: Nothing ‘particularly salacious’ in trust document
Alex Falconi, the founder of Our Nevada Judges, said he expects it will take a few months for the documents to be released to the media.
Both Falconi and Conrad said it’s still important for media outlets to have access to the documents, even though the Murdoch family is no longer litigating the case in court.
“Despite the case being settled, unsealing serves the public interest because it educates on the operation of the probate court and informs as to governance of News Corp, a global media conglomerate,” Falconi said in an emailed statement.
During the hearing, an attorney representing Lachlan Murdoch argued that the judge should seal the majority of the document outlining the trust that Rupert Murdoch sought to modify. The judge, however, said he was not in favor of substantial redactions, and that there was nothing “particularly salacious” in the trust document.
“I know this much: The court is going to unseal and un-redact those portions of the trust that are referenced in the findings of fact,” Gorman said. “Because the public has a right to see how the court makes its decision — that is the right the public has.”
Contact Katelyn Newberg at knewberg@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0240.
