Anna Nicole Update

High Court Rules For Nicole Smith In Estate Case

WASHINGTON -(Dow Jones)- The U.S. Supreme Court Monday ruled unanimously in favor of Vickie Marshall, the former Playmate known as Anna Nicole Smith, in her continued fight for a portion of her late husband's estate.

The decision overturned a federal appeals court ruling that had limited Smith's ability to continue pressing for a share of Texas oilman J. Howard Marshall's estate in a federal court, where she has prevailed in trial court proceedings. However, Smith lost in her estate fight with Marshall's son, E. Pierce Marshall, in a Texas probate court.

The case featured a voluptuous entertainer battling for estate funds from her short marriage to an elderly rich man. However, the Supreme Court's opinion turned on mundane matters of court jurisdiction and the proper legal venue for resolving disputes over estates.

"Vickie Marshall's claim ... qualifies for adjudication in federal court," Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg wrote in the Supreme Court opinion.

In a statement, E. Pierce Marshall said he will continue to fight Smith's estate claims in the federal court proceedings. "Today's U.S. Supreme Court ruling in Marshall v. Marshall was on a technical issue and does not validate Smith's false claims and libelous accusations, " Marshall said. "I will continue to fight for my father's will & trust."

Kent Richland, the representing Smith, said he is confident the ruling will lead to a win for her in lower courts. "Anna Nicol Smith's claim existed years before her husband died and years before thoughts of probate even began," Richland said in a statement. "The court has ratified her position."

The decision clarified the boundaries of federal court review of probate matters, ruling that issues normally handled by a federal court may be litigated there even in a probate matter. Under the opinion, state courts maintain jurisdiction over the handling of wills and administration of estates. "The probate exception does not bar federal courts from adjudicating matters outside those confines," Ginsburg said.

Smith attended oral arguments in the appeal, drawing a throng of paparazzi to the Supreme Court and creating a Hollywood buzz around the austere marble columns that normally doesn't occur at the high court. At the oral arguments, the justices appeared favorable to Smith's claims.

The case now goes back to lower courts for further deliberations where Smith will have a renewed effort to claim part of the estimated $1.6 billion Marshall estate.

I still stand by what I said two months ago.  I still hope the golddigger doesn't get a dime, regardless of what Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg says.