The estate of the late O.J. Simpson has agreed to pay up. The estate of the late former football star later better known for his infamous car chase and subsequent murder trial has agreed to pay an eye-watering, multi-million dollar claim from Fred Goldman, the father of the slain Ron Goldman, who Simpson was accused (but later acquitted) of murdering alongside his ex-wife Nicole Brown. The agreement comes 30 years after the infamous media personality was ordered to pay the Goldman and Brown families more than $33 million following a wrongful death suit filed in 1995.
Per court documents filed Friday in a Clark County, Nevada, district court, Malcolm LaVergne, Simpson's estate executor, agreed to pay Goldman nearly $58 million. Goldman had filed a creditor claim in July 2024, originally seeking just over $117 million, after a civil jury found Simpson liable for the June 1994 deaths.
© WireImageThe estate executor agreed to Goldman, though stated that while he believes the claim was "done in good faith," he found Goldman's computation of interest inaccurate, noting the original amount did "not appear to be as accurate as possible based on simple judgment interest calculations," but he would "continue to work" with him on a "more accurate" interest calculation.
NBC News reports Michaelle Rafferty, Goldman's attorney, said LaVergne's acceptance of the claim was a "positive acknowledgement of the debt," adding in a statement: "It does not constitute payment. This acceptance allows the administration of the claim to move forward in probate. We will continue to monitor the probate process as it progresses."
© Getty ImagesSimpson's net worth
At the time of Simpson's death in April 2024, it was reported that he had a net worth of approximately $3 million. However, LaVergne has since told NBC News that the value of the estate is between $500,000 and $1 million. He said the estate will pay Goldman what they can after administrative expenses and the IRS is paid, (Simpson owed money to the IRS at the time of his death).
A look back
On June 12, 1994, Brown and Goldman Jr. were found stabbed to death outside of her apartment in Brentwood, Los Angeles, and Simpson, who died of cancer aged 76, immediately became a suspect.
Charges were subsequently filed against him along with a warrant for his arrest, and though he and his attorneys had agreed he would turn himself in on June 17, he instead failed to do so, leading to the infamous low-speed car chase in a white 1993 Ford Bronco SUV, with his former teammate and good friend Al Cowlings in the driver's seat. The moment was watched by a whopping 95 million Americans.
© Getty ImagesThe subsequent 1995 trial for the murders, dubbed the trial of the century, lasted 11 months, and an estimated 100 million people nationwide tuned in to learn the verdict. Among one of the most memorable moments from the trial was the bloodied, left-handed glove that was found outside Brown's residence, with the coordinating pair later being found at Simpson's estate. During a June 15, 1995 court session, Simpson put on the gloves, which were too small for him — prosecution argued the gloves had shrunk because of the blood — and his lawyer Johnnie Lee Cochran Jr. famously declared: "If it doesn't fit, you must acquit!"
