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Late Tom Benson's Will Lists Wife Gayle As Sole Beneficiary

By listing his wife, Gayle, as sole beneficiary, Benson leaves no inheritance to his daughter or grandchildrenGETTY IMAGES

Late Saints and Pelicans Owner Tom Benson indicated in his last will and testament that he wanted his wife, Gayle Benson, as "sole beneficiary and that he left no inheritance to his daughter, Renee Benson, or grandchildren, Rita and Ryan LeBlanc," according to the New Orleans TIMES-PICAYUNE. The will, filed in New Orleans civil court Friday and posted in its entirety by WVUE-Fox on Saturday, "leaves all of Benson's property to a trust the billionaire established the same day he signed the will" in July '15. The will states that if the original trust is "no longer in existence at Benson's death, his entire fortune goes to a separate trust" run by Gayle Benson and Saints and Pelicans President Dennis Lauscha, who is also named as executor of Benson's estate. Benson signed his will a little more than one month after New Orleans Civil District Judge Kern Reese "ruled him competent in a legal battle with his daughter and grandchildren, who had argued he was experiencing mental decline and was being unduly influenced by his wife and an inner circle of Saints and Pelicans executives." The legal fight began after Tom Benson announced he was "severing ties with his daughter and two grandchildren." It "remains unclear whether they now [intend] to challenge his will." The will also included "contingency plans that would have given significant power" to Saints GM Mickey Loomis and Senior VP/Communications Greg Bensel, though those plans were "not necessary at the time of Benson's death" (New Orleans TIMES-PICAYUNE, 3/18). In New Orleans, Ramon Antonio Vargas noted the will "vividly illustrates how far outside Benson's inner circle his former heirs were exiled" (NEW ORLEANS ADVOCATE, 3/17).

LEADING LADY: In New Orleans, Herbie Teope noted Gayle Benson "released an open letter to fans" Friday in the wake of her husband's death. She wrote, "To his very last day, Tom Benson's greatest hope was to bring more championships to our fans. I want you to know we are more committed than ever to make his hopes a reality. ... I am blessed to be surrounded by a wonderful leadership team and staff and we will move forward successfully together" (New Orleans TIMES-PICAYUNE, 3/17). Also in New Orleans, Josh Katzenstein noted Gayle Benson now becomes the "only woman to own franchises in the NFL and NBA -- and, on that basis alone, one of the most powerful women in all of professional sports" (New Orleans TIMES-PICAYUNE, 3/18).

LOOKING AHEAD: In DC, Tim Bontemps wrote, "Don’t expect the future of the Pelicans to be considered settled by anyone in and around the NBA." Gayle Benson is from New Orleans, and it would "seem unthinkable she’d consider moving the team herself." But with high dollar figures "flying around -- and with intriguing open markets in Seattle, Mexico City, Las Vegas and Vancouver -- it would be seemingly only a matter of time before an offer comes along that would, at minimum, prove tempting for her to move on from owning the Pelicans." Whether that happens could have "wide-ranging implications for the rest of the league." There have been questions for some time about whether the NBA "should expand, or will even look to do so." One school of thought has been that until the situations in New Orleans and Memphis -- the "two most unstable from an ownership standpoint, and in two of its smallest markets -- are resolved, expansion would be put on hold" (WASHINGTON POST, 3/18).

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