Fight over $90 million estate settled

WAILUKU, Maui (AP) — A settlement has been reached in a lawsuit over a Maui man’s estimated $90 million estate.

The deal was reached this week, James Krueger, the attorney for one of the parties in the case, said on Friday. He declined to reveal details of the settlement, saying both sides had agreed to keep it confidential.

The case involved the estate of Laurence Dorcy, the great grandson of a railroad baron.

Dorcy died at the age of 76 in June at Straub Clinic & Hospital on Oahu. The Star-Advertiser reports that he created a new will before his death that named gas station owner Hans Kanuha the heir to his estate.

That prompted accusations from people who stood to benefit from the original will that the 42-year-old Kanuha had tricked a frail and confused Dorcy into naming him the heir. Among Kanuha’s accusers was Jeffrey Peterson, the personal representative for Dorcy’s estate until January 2011.

Michael Rudy, one of Peterson’s attorneys, said he and his client were pleased with the settlement.

Dorcy, referred to as “The Baron,” controlled a charitable trust established by his great grandfather, railroad baron James Jerome Hill, founder of the Great Northern Railway, according to Rudy.

Krueger said his client was also happy with the deal.

“From Hans’s standpoint (the settlement) is vindication that he was making sure that his adopted father’s wishes were going to take place,” Krueger said.