Vulcan, Paul Allen's holding company, on Wednesday said the late Microsoft co-founder's sister, Jody, would be executor and trustee of his estate.
The task of overseeing the disposition of Paul Allen’s estate, likely the largest in Washington state history, will fall to his sister, Jody Allen.
Paul Allen, who co-founded Microsoft and used the wealth generated by his stake in the computing giant to fund a range of business, cultural and philanthropic projects, died Oct. 15 of complications from non-Hodgkin lymphoma at age 65. Allen wasn’t married and had no children.
“I have been given the responsibility to steward Paul’s wealth in service of his vision for the future,” Jody Allen said Wednesday in a statement released by a public-relations firm representing Vulcan, the holding company for the Allens’ range of projects. “I will do all that I can to ensure that Paul’s vision is realized, not just for years, but for generations.”
The statement said Jody Allen had been named executor and trustee of Paul Allen’s estate, pursuant to his instructions, giving her responsibility for overseeing the execution of his will and settling his affairs with tax authorities and parties with an interest in his projects.
Determining what happens to his holdings — which Forbes valued at $20.3 billion this year and includes a Seattle-focused real-estate development company, the Seattle Seahawks and Portland Trail Blazers sports franchises, and dozens of investments and philanthropic commitments — is expected to be the work of teams of attorneys and auditors in the coming months.
Jody Allen, 60, was involved in much of her brother’s work after he stepped down from Microsoft in 1983, including co-founding the Experience Music Project, later known as MoPOP, in 2000. For years she was chief executive of Vulcan before she left that role for what the company called a sabbatical in 2014. She remains listed as a governing person on many of the entities associated with Vulcan and her brother.