Dolly Parton lawsuit: her estate moves to drop case against nephew

The company that manages Dolly Parton’s business affairs has asked a Tennessee court to dismiss its lawsuit against her nephew, Bryan Seaver, ending, for now, a family dispute that played out in public after the singer’s death in August.

She’s Alive LLC, which oversees Parton’s professional assets, filed a notice of voluntary dismissal in Tennessee state court on Thursday, 5 November. The dismissal is without prejudice, which means the claims could be filed again later.

What was the lawsuit about?

In September the estate’s company sued Seaver and his security business, Squadron Augmented Protection Services, accusing him of making threats and creating a “culture of fear”. A judge granted a temporary restraining order that month, finding a “present and continuing disruption and threat” to the company. A later filing in October claimed Seaver had tried to avoid being served with court papers, describing a no-trespassing sign and barbed wire on the handrails at his home.

These were allegations; no court ever ruled on whether they were true.

Seaver’s side

On Monday, Seaver filed an 18-page response denying what the company called an “escalating campaign of intimidation”. He said private messages quoted in the case had been taken out of context and that his security firm had been owed about $251,000, which has since been paid. He told reporters the restraining order prevented him from discussing the case publicly. Three days after his response, the company asked to drop the suit.

Why “lawsuit” was a top US search

Parton, the country music star behind Jolene and 9 to 5, died in August after what her family called a brief battle with cancer. Interest in how her estate and business are being run has stayed high, and news of the dismissal pushed the word “lawsuit” to the top of US Google searches on Friday.

Whether the restraining order is formally lifted, and whether either side returns to court, is the next thing to watch.