DMX’s long-running estate feud over intellectual property and control of his legacy reached a decisive conclusion in a New York courtroom.
A judge ruled that his ex-wife Tashera Simmons has no ownership over his music rights or trademarks.
The legal fight, which erupted after the rapper’s 2021 death without a will, centered on Tashera’s claim that a 2016 divorce settlement entitled her to 50% of DMX’s intellectual property.
The court disagreed.
“The 2016 settlement agreement does not unequivocally assign ownership of decedent’s copyrighted works or trademark and, indeed, makes no mention of ownership or title to such property,” the judge stated in the ruling. “Plaintiff has no income interest and is not otherwise entitled to any monies of any kind generated by or attributable to services rendered by Earl Simmons.”
The court declared that the estate remains the exclusive owner of all copyrights and trademarks tied to DMX’s name and work, including those created during his marriage to Tashera.
The judge emphasized that the language in the divorce agreement referred only to royalty payments, not ownership.
Another part of the dispute centered around five Letters of Direction DMX signed before his death, which instructed royalty payments to be split with Tashera for specific recordings made between 1998 and 2013.
The court ruled those letters did not confer any ownership rights.
The judge concluded, “Plaintiff has no approval rights or any other rights incident to any alleged ownership in connection with any intellectual property owned by Earl Simmons irrespective of when such rights were obtained or acquired by Earl Simmons.”
The estate, which includes potential future earnings from music royalties estimated at $17.7 million, has been mired in legal chaos since DMX’s sudden death from a drug overdose and heart attack at age 50.
The rapper left behind 15 children and no will, igniting a scramble among heirs and associates to control his assets.
However, after allegations of misconduct, they were suspended indefinitely. In the latest ruling, the court dismissed the action against them.
The estate is now overseen by co-administrators Sasha Simmons and Desiree Lindstrom, the mother of DMX’s youngest son, Exodus.
Lindstrom had previously petitioned to be recognized as DMX’s common-law wife, but that request was denied.
The ruling effectively ends Tashera Simmons’ legal pursuit of DMX’s intellectual property, closing a major chapter in the ongoing battle over the late Hip-Hop icon’s estate.