Lawyer Calls Sibling Vote Void
A legal fight now threatens the Buss family’s plan to sell its remaining 17.8% stake in the Los Angeles Lakers. Five of the six Buss siblings reportedly voted to sell their shares to Bob Iger and Josh Kushner, but Jeanie Buss, the team’s governor, refuses to go along with the deal.
Jeanie’s attorney, Adam Streisand, sent a letter to law firms representing her siblings Jim, Johnny, Janie, Joey, and Jesse. He wrote that any sibling vote to sell “would be and is void,” since it would violate the terms of the JAB Trust, which holds the Lakers shares. Consequently, he argued that no sale could proceed without approval from the trust’s current co-trustees: Jeanie, Janie, and Joey Buss.
Meanwhile, a statement attributed to the Buss family said they had chosen to sell the remaining stake as part of the larger transaction, adding that they wanted to “exit gracefully.” Streisand pushed back hard against that framing, however, and accused ESPN’s Shams Charania of falsely reporting a unanimous vote. He further claimed that Joey and Jesse Buss have leaked misleading information for years to damage the organization.
Trust Terms Protect Jeanie’s Role
According to Streisand, a 2017 court ruling requires the family trust to maintain at least 15% ownership so Jeanie can remain controlling owner. Therefore, selling the full 17.8% stake would strip her of that role entirely. Streisand demanded that the siblings publicly acknowledge Jeanie as the Lakers’ controlling owner and take no further action on the disputed vote.
The broader sale, led by Iger and Kushner, values the Lakers at a record $12.5 billion and would give the group roughly 83% ownership once completed. Sibling conflict is nothing new for the Buss family, since Jeanie has clashed with her brothers repeatedly since 2013. Ultimately, the NBA’s board of governors must still approve the entire transaction.
