The estate was left to the Hughes’ only child, but the trustees had their own best interests at heart.
Suzan wanted what was best for her son.Mark Hughes founded Herbalife in 1980 when he was only 24 and subsequently built one of the most successful supplement companies in the world. The chairman and CEO of Herbalife International, Inc. married Suzan in 1987 and four years later they became the proud parents of their son.Herbalife grew into a multinational corporation and Mark Hughes’ fortune grew along with it. Hughes’ marriage to Suzan, however, was less successful and ended in divorce in 1998. The charismatic, globe-trotting leader of his business empire, who was adored by the large consortium of Herbalife distributors, eventually remarried and in February of 2000 celebrated the 20th anniversary of Herbalife International. Sadly, however, Mark's part in this story came to an unceremonious end May 21, 2000, when he passed away suddenly at the age of 44, leaving behind his only child who was eight years old at the time of his father’s death.In his will, Mark left the entirety of his $399 million fortune to his son and his dying wish was to ensure his child was better off than he was and that his child could maintain the standard of living to which he was accustomed to, with or without a father.Pursuant to his will, his son was named primary beneficiary of Mark’s estate. The estate included personal property, real estate and 55 percent of Herbalife International along with other investments. Some assets were scheduled to be distributed to his child when he reached 25 while others were scheduled to be distributed to him when he was 35.Mark left his child with the wealth to enjoy a good life, or so he thought.Shortly after his death, Suzan, the co-trustees and the custodian engaged in rounds of litigation relating to various aspects of Mark’s estate.“From day one, Mark’s wishes were not carried out by Klein, Pair and Reynolds, the trustees of his estate,” states Suzan. “They made it very difficult for his son to do even the simplest of things, like getting his personal effects from his home and was only permitted one visit.”Suzan asserts that, after taking control of Mark’s estate, the co-trustees began liquidating assets that rightfully belonged to Mark's child with no regard for his son. They worked to enrich themselves while smearing Mark’s name and hers, Hughes claims. “They were blinded by greed for themselves,” she said. “They were making millions from the trust and fully ignoring the needs of the only beneficiary.” In addition, they were earning millions from Herbalife through self-appointed executive positions with the company.As a result, in her dual role of guardian/mother, Suzan filed suit to remove them as trustees. This kicked-off the legal battle that spanned 12 years and cost many millions of dollars because the response from Klein, Pair and Reynolds was “Go ahead, sue us.” As one writer put it, the trustees “forged a David versus Goliath battle of epic proportions against the Guardian, and they financed it freely with her son’s inheritance, wasting some $50 Million dollars in legal fees. Klein, Pair and Reynolds’ goal was to push The Guardian to the breaking point emotionally and financially.”Motivated by the desire to carry out the wishes that Mark put in his will and trust, and her love for her son, Suzan persevered and was not broken. After enduring more than a decade of legal battles in which she was “antagonized, laughed at and became a victim of every legal dirty trick in the book,” Suzan, and his son, emerged victorious.In March of last year, in the case of re: The Matter of the Mark Hughes Family Trust, case number BP063500, in the Superior Court of the State of California, County of Los Angeles, L.A. Superior Court Judge Mitchell L. Beckloff ordered the removal of the three trustees. The botched sale of a parcel of land, called Tower Grove, by Klein, Pair and Reynolds resulted in Judge Beckloff ruling that “this substantial breach requires the removal of all three co-trustees.”Suzan said that she “was fighting for what a father left for his only child, wanting what was best for her son, and getting him exactly what his father wanted him to have.”In the end, a mother’s love prevailed.
