Tony Bennett’s daughters have accused their brother Danny of mismanaging the late singer’s finances.
Antonia and Johanna claimed in January court documents obtained by People that they have “serious concerns” about the “mismanagement” of Danny’s role as trustee over Bennett’s estate.
“Danny acted in multiple, conflicting fiduciary capacities for an extended period prior to Tony’s death and took (for himself and his children) significant funds from the Family Trust,” the court documents read. “Moreover, as publicized by Danny to various media outlets, at some point prior to Tony’s death, Tony entered a phase of diminished capacity, which means Tony was no longer able to act as co-trustee, leaving Danny to serve as sole Trustee of the Family Trust with no oversight.”
According to Antonia and Johanna, their late father had a “clear intention and direction” that all four of his children would be treated equally. They are seeking Danny’s accounting from both before and after Bennett died in 2023.
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Antonia and Johanna named Danny in a June 2024 legal motion, claiming that certain assets were unaccounted for after Bennett died. The two women, as well as their brother Dae are all beneficiaries of the Tony Bennett 1994 Family Trust, while Danny is the sole trustee.
Danny has not publicly addressed his sisters’ new accusations, but he previously filed to transfer the court case to the surrogate’s court or dismiss it in November 2023. Antonia and Johanna are now asking the court to deny his motion.
Bennett died at the age of 96 in July 2023. He is survived by wife Susan Benedetto and his four children. He shared Danny and Dae with ex Patricia Beech, as well as his two daughters with ex Sandra Grant.
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One year after Bennett’s passing, Antonia and Johanna accused their sibling of misconduct. According to the filing obtained by People, the pair claim Danny would allegedly write checks using funds from the trust “as he saw fit” and made “multiple gifts to himself” totaling over $200,700. Antonia and Johanna also claimed that Danny took $50,000 advances in addition to commissions he earned as Bennett’s business manager.
The legendary jazz singer created the trust in 1994, naming his sons as co-trustees. The fund was amended in 2008 in which Dae was replaced as trustee with the singer himself.
Antonia and Johanna also named Dae and Benedetto as respondents in the lawsuit, claiming that they avoided “accountability for Danny’s actions” because they previously claimed the sisters “lack standing” to request accounting for periods ahead of Bennett’s death. Neither Dae nor Benedetto have publicly addressed the claims.
