A Delaware judge has ordered R&B singer Faith Evans to pay more than $12.5 million to the trust of her late mother-in-law, Voletta Wallace, ending a bitter legal dispute over profits from the Notorious B.I.G.’s estate.
Judge Kathaleen St. J. McCormick of the Delaware Court of Chancery ruled Tuesday that Evans must distribute $12,518,336 in withheld catalog proceeds to the Voletta Wallace Revocable Trust, plus prejudgment interest compounded quarterly. The ruling rejected Evans’ attempt to limit the payout to just $48,612 while a separate family dispute played out in Pennsylvania.
The Dispute
Evans and Voletta Wallace formed Notorious B.I.G., LLC in 2007 to manage the late rapper’s intellectual property. Under their agreement, each assigned half of her distribution rights to Biggie’s children, leaving Wallace, Evans, T’yanna Wallace, and Christopher Jordan Wallace each entitled to 25% of the company’s payouts.
After Wallace died in February 2025, her interest passed to her trust, overseen by Wayne Barrow, Biggie’s former manager. Evans, as sole manager of the LLC, refused to recognize the trust as a member and withheld distributions.
The Judge’s Ruling
McCormick found that while the trust wasn’t formally admitted as an LLC member until December 2025, that delay did not erase its claim to earlier payouts. “The Trust is entitled to distributions made as of the date of Ms. Wallace’s death,” she wrote.
The judge also rejected Evans’ argument that the pending Pennsylvania lawsuit—brought by her son CJ Wallace challenging Barrow’s role as trustee—justified withholding the money. She cited Pennsylvania law stating that a fiduciary’s good-faith actions cannot be undone by later legal challenges.
“All economic rights associated with Ms. Wallace’s member interest in the LLC transferred to her estate upon her death,” McCormick wrote.
The Family Rift
The ruling exposes a deep rift within Biggie’s family. CJ Wallace is suing Barrow in Pennsylvania, alleging that Barrow manipulated his grandmother into rewriting her will on her deathbed to give him sole control, removing CJ as co-trustee . Barrow denies the allegations and says CJ’s lawsuit is being engineered by Evans, which her lawyers deny.
Barrow’s attorney, Jay Freiberg, said the distributions with interest will total nearly $14 million. “We are pleased with the latest order from the Chancellor,” he said. “It continues the Chancellor’s decisions recognizing Faith Evans’ misbehavior regarding Notorious Big LLC after the death of Mama Wallace”.
Evans’ attorney declined to comment.
The Bottom Line
Faith Evans has been ordered to pay $12.5 million, plus interest, to Voletta Wallace’s trust after a Delaware judge ruled she improperly withheld distributions from the Notorious B.I.G. estate. The ruling ends one chapter of a bitter legal fight that has divided Biggie’s family, with his son CJ still challenging the trust’s control in Pennsylvania. Barrow says the total payout will approach $14 million.
