Last October, Liam Payne passed away at the age of 31. Like the overwhelming majority of people in their early 30s, Liam died intestate, meaning without a valid will. His estate has been an open question since his passing – no one knew how much money Liam had left, or what the state of his financial affairs would turn out to be. No one knew if Liam’s family would fight for a piece of his estate or whether everything would go to his eight-year-old son Bear. Well, months later, everything has seemingly been sorted out. Liam’s entire estate goes to Bear, with nothing going to Liam’s parents, sisters or his partner at the time of his death.

Liam Payne left behind money, property and possessions worth more than £24m when he died last year, official records show. The One Direction singer died aged 31 in Argentina in October without making a will.

If someone dies without making a will, the rules say any children will normally inherit their estate if there is no living husband, wife or civil partner. Payne never married but he and former Girls Aloud singer Cheryl had a son, Bear, who is now aged eight.

Cheryl, who was Payne’s partner for more than two years, and music industry lawyer Richard Bray have been named administrators of his estate. They will manage the money, but they currently have limited authority and cannot distribute it.

Payne died at the age of 31 after falling from a hotel balcony in Buenos Aires. A court in Argentina dropped charges in February of criminal negligence against three out of the five people who had been charged in connection with Payne’s death.

Probate documents show that the total gross value of his estate was £28.6m, but was reduced to £24.3m when any debts and expenses were deducted.

Cheryl and Bray have been given a limited grant of representation, described as being “to allow the administrator power to preserve the deceased’s estate until a general grant is made”.

[From BBC]

His finances were in a much better state than I expected, all things considered. I would also imagine that within the estate, they’re building in a route for any future royalties, licensing money, etc, from all of the songs written and/or performed by Liam. I assume that Bear will end up inheriting a nice-sized fortune when he’s 18 years old. It’s interesting that Cheryl has partial control of it too.

Sources told Page Six that “Everything goes to Bear. Nobody else gets anything.” Page Six notes: “Payne’s parents Geoff and Karen are not expected to get anything, nor will his sisters, Nicola and Ruth. Payne was dating American influencer Kate Cassidy, 26, at the time of his death. Page Six is told she will receive nothing from his estate.” I don’t think someone’s girlfriend should get part of his estate? Controversial opinion, I guess. But I do wonder if Liam’s parents will end up suing to get a slice.

Photos courtesy of Avalon Red.