When pop singer Michael Jackson died, he left behind three children, Paris, Prince and Bigi, who are beneficiaries of his will. There is a trust set aside for them and another trust set aside for his mother, Katherine. Unfortunately, accessing the money from the trust is a lot more complicated for the Jackson family than Michael could have anticipated.

The problem started when the IRS audited Michael’s estate’s federal tax return and determined that the estate owed “an additional $700 million in taxes and penalties” because the estate “undervalued its assets.” In 2021, the estate disputed this decision in tax court and won; but that wasn’t the end of the problem.

The estate has since filed a motion to reconsider the value of Mijac (the music catalog owned by Michael that the estate sold to Sony). Until the court determines the value of Mijac, the total value of the estate remains pending.

The trust also requires 20% of the value to be donated to charity, so until the total value is determined and the charitable donation calculated, the estate claims that they cannot fund the trusts of Michael’s beneficiaries; however, that doesn’t mean that Michael’s mother and children aren’t receiving any money from their trusts.

According to court documents obtained by PEOPLE, the estate claims, “Virtually no request of Mrs. Jackson for her care or maintenance has been declined.” According to a source who spoke to PEOPLE, she has received over $55 million so far.

In a statement to PEOPLE, the estate explained that the beneficiaries are still receiving money from the trust through an allowance. The statement reads, “In annual reports provided to the probate court, which are publicly available, anyone can see that the Estate provides Michael’s mother and children with very substantial amounts of money to support them.”

The statement continues, “The Estate has a very cooperative relationship with Michael’s children and whenever they need anything, the Estate works with them to ensure that they are very well taken care of, just as Michael would have wanted.”

Meanwhile, Katherine believes “the Executors are holding all of the assets in the Estate in order to keep control over them, and to avoid the more liberal distribution requirements of the Trust.”