Murdoch loses court case in real-life 'Succession' battle

Rupert Murdoch's attempt to give his eldest son control of his family media empire has been blocked by a US court after a lengthy legal battle with three of his other children.

- HOLLY WILLIAMS

The real-life Succession-style courtroom tussle saw the 93-year-old media mogul fail in his bid to change his family trust, which now gives his four oldest children equal voting power to control the group behind News Corp and Fox News after his death.

A court commissioner ruled that Mr Murdoch and his son Lachlan – who is the head of Fox News and News Corp – had acted in “bad faith” and called their efforts a “carefully crafted charade” designed to “permanently cement” Lachlan’s control, according to a sealed document obtained at the weekend by The New York Times.

The conflict over the family trust is not thought to be centred on money, as Mr Murdoch is not seeking to diminish any of his children’s financial inheritance. Instead, the case sought to change the voting power of his less conservative children, and is thought to have been a move to cement a right-wing agenda across his media empire.