Update: John Singleton’s Ex-GF’s $15 Million Lawsuit Against His Mother Over Alleged Fraud Has Been Dismissed

November 2, 2023 by Monique Nicole in Film with 0 Comments

John Singleton

Update: John Singleton’s Ex-GF’s $15 Million Lawsuit Against His Mother Over Alleged Fraud Has Been Dismissed

Update: (Nov. 2, 2023): A new update has surfaced on the $15 million lawsuit John Singleton’s ex filed against his mother.

As previously reported, Vestria Barlow — an ex of the late director — sued John Singleton’s mother, Sheila Ward over fraud claims. Ward was appointed as administrator of her son’s estate in 2019. Reportedly, the only beneficiaries of Singleton’s estate are his seven children.

However, Barlow — who had two children with the “Snowfall” co-creator, claimed she worked with the screenwriter on many of his projects and was owed 7-10% of all residuals owed to Singleton. Her lawsuit stated,

“The studio defendants, defendant Shelia Ward, and defendant Estate of John D. Singleton did knowingly, intentionally, negligently did conceal true and accurate income derived from properties where royalties and residuals are and wad due plaintiff.”

Ward filed a motion for the court to drop the suit because it was filed in Louisiana, which she has no ties to. According to a new report from RadarOnline, a federal judge has agreed with Singleton’s mom, officially dismissing the case.

Original Story: (Jul. 9, 2023): John Singleton’s mother has been hit with a $15 million lawsuit over alleged fraud.

According to RadarOnline, Vestria Barlow, one of John Singleton’s exes whom he had two children with, has filed a lawsuit against John’s mother Sheila Ward, John’s estate, and various studios.

As previously reported, Sheila Ward was responsible for administering his estate following his death in 2019. She informed the court that John’s 7 children would be the beneficiaries of his estate.

As part of the probate case, Vestria’s daughter Cleopatra demanded $1 million claiming John was supposed to maintain a life insurance policy with her as the beneficiary. Vestria, who also had a son with John, claimed she was awarded primary custody of both children back in 2001. John was reportedly ordered to pay $3,875 per month per child until they turned 18. She claimed he stopped making the payments very early on which led to her demanding $438k in back child support.

John Singleton

In her new lawsuit, Vestria said she wanted to recover damages for defendants’

“knowingly and intentionally failure and refusal to pay past and ongoing royalties, residuals and compensation for use of Plaintiff’s intellectual property in films, television programs, videos and other streaming services.”

Vestria claims to have collaborated with John on several of his films including Poetic Justice, Higher Learning, Woo, Rosewood, Shaft, Baby Boy, Hustle & Flow, Black Snake Moan, and more. She also claims to have helped out on his hit series Snowfall.

In the lawsuit, Vestria accuses the various studios of failing to pay the residuals owed to John properly. She claims the studios owe her 7-10 percent of all residuals owed to the late director.

The suit read,

“The studio defendants, defendant Sheila Ward, and defendant Estate of John D. Singleton did knowingly, intentionally, negligently did conceal true and accurate income derived from properties where royalties and residuals are and was due plaintiff.”

Vestria claims to have suffered financial loss, humiliation, emotional distress, anxiety, and stress and is now asking for $15 million.

In response to the suit, John’s mom and the estate asked the court to dismiss the case entirely. She argued the lawsuit was filed past the statute of limitations and was also filed in the wrong state.

This is an ongoing case.

What are your thoughts? Let us know in the comments below!

[VIA]