E. Pierce Marshall was an American petroleum industry executive who inherited a 16% stake in Koch Industries from his father, J. Howard Marshall II, a billionaire oil tycoon. He spent the last 12 years of his life as a defendant in lawsuits by his stepmother, Anna Nicole Smith, a former Playboy model and stripper, and his brother, J. Howard Marshall III, who both sought part of his father’s fortune after being left out of the will
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Who was E. Pierce Marshall?
E. Pierce Marshall was born on January 12, 1939, and attended The Webb Schools, Millersburg Military Institute, and Culver Military Academy. He graduated from Pomona College in 1961 and began his career at General Motors as an engine test engineer. He later worked for Loeb, Rhoades & Co., an investment bank in New York, and moved to Houston in 1969 to work with his father
He received a 4% stake in Koch Industries from his father in 1974, along with his brother, J. Howard Marshall III. However, the four sons of Fred C. Koch, the founder of Koch Industries, had a feud over the control of the company, and E. Pierce Marshall and his father sided with Charles and David Koch, while J. Howard Marshall III sided with Bill and Frederick Koch. J. Howard Marshall II bought back the shares he had given to J. Howard Marshall III in 1980, and the company bought out the shares of Bill, Frederick, and others in 1983
E. Pierce Marshall also served as the president and chairman of Electron Corporation, an iron foundry based in Colorado, and assumed operational responsibilities at Marshall Petroleum, his father’s company, in 1993. He was married to Elaine Tettemer Marshall and had two children, Preston and Elaine
How did E. Pierce Marshall die?
E. Pierce Marshall died on June 20, 2006, at the age of 67, as a result of septic shock brought on by a combination of Staphylococcus and Streptococcus infections that were resistant to drugs He died unexpectedly in the Dallas area, where he lived, and his family said in a statement that he had a “brief and extremely aggressive infection”
His father had married Anna Nicole Smith, who was 63 years younger than him, in 1994, and died 14 months later. Smith claimed that her husband had verbally promised her half of his fortune, but his will left everything to E. Pierce Marshall and nothing to Smith or J. Howard Marshall III
Smith and J. Howard Marshall III sued E. Pierce Marshall and his father’s estate, accusing him of altering his father’s will and interfering with their marriage. A Harris County jury awarded Smith nothing in 2001, but a California bankruptcy judge awarded her $475 million in 2000. The case went through several appeals and reached the U.S. Supreme Court in 2006, which ruled that the matter was not the exclusive jurisdiction of the Texas court, allowing Smith another chance to pursue the money
What happened after E. Pierce Marshall’s death?
E. Pierce Marshall’s death did not end the legal dispute over his father’s estate, as his widow and children continued to fight Smith and J. Howard Marshall III in court. Smith died in 2007 of an accidental drug overdose, and her estate was represented by her lawyer and former boyfriend, Howard K. Stern. J. Howard Marshall III died in 2014 of natural causes
The case was finally settled in 2014, when a federal judge in California ruled that Smith’s estate was entitled to nothing from J. Howard Marshall II’s estate, and that E. Pierce Marshall’s estate was the rightful heir. The judge also ordered Smith’s estate to pay $500,000 to E. Pierce Marshall’s estate for legal fees
The judge said that the case was a “massive waste of judicial resources” and that Smith’s estate had pursued “a fool’s errand”. He also said that E. Pierce Marshall had been “maligned and ridiculed unjustifiably” and that he had “defended his father’s intentions with respect to his estate plan”
Conclusion
E. Pierce Marshall was a successful businessman who inherited a large stake in Koch Industries from his father, J. Howard Marshall II. He died of a drug-resistant infection in 2006, amid a long and bitter legal battle with his stepmother, Anna Nicole Smith, and his brother, J. Howard Marshall III, over his father’s fortune. His death did not resolve the case, which dragged on for another eight years, until a judge ruled in favor of his estate and denied any claims by Smith’s estate. E. Pierce Marshall’s legacy was tarnished by the controversy, but he was also praised for his loyalty and integrity
