Despite a family feud that has put the future of his fortune in question, New Orleans Saints and Pelicans owner Tom Benson remains the richest man in Louisiana, with a net worth of $2.2 billion that puts him at No. 307 on Forbes’ list of the 400 richest people in the United States.
In the rankings released Tuesday, Benson, 88, climbed ahead of last year’s ranking of No. 386, when his net worth was pegged at $1.6 billion. He remains the only billionaire in Louisiana, according to Forbes.
In addition to the city’s professional sports franchises, Benson’s holdings include a 26-story office building named after him, auto dealerships and WVUE-TV. The magazine puts the Saints’ worth at more than $1.4 billion, “one of the NFL’s more profitable teams despite their small market, thanks in part to scoring favorable stadium rental rates” for the Mercedes-Benz Superdome.
In its mention of Benson, Forbes also notes the bitter court dispute in which the billionaire finds himself.
“Benson had been planning on leaving his two New Orleans teams — the NFL Saints and NBA Pelicans — to his daughter and two grandchildren. But in January 2015, he decided instead to leave the teams to his wife of 10 years, Gayle. His daughter and grandchildren sued, claiming Benson, 88, is not competent to run the teams,” Forbes explains. “In June 2015 a judge declared Benson competent. He’s now trying to exchange team stock held by trusts for his heirs with some $500 million in promissory notes, though his (potential) heirs are moving to reject the deal. The case is set to go to trial in summer of 2016.”
The five richest people in America on the Forbes list were former Microsoft CEO Bill Gates, $76 billion; Berkshire Hathaway CEO Warren Buffet, $62 billion; Oracle founder Larry Ellison, $48 billion; Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, $47 billion; and Charles and David Koch, $41 billion.Read the full Forbes list here.