E. Pierce Marshall

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Everett Pierce Marshall (January 12, 1939 – June 20, 2006) was an American businessman and a son of J. Howard Marshall II.

According to a Dallas Morning News article, he was a very private man, but became known due to defending the long-running legal dispute from his father's third wife, Anna Nicole Smith.^[1]

Marshall attended Millersburg Military Institute, Culver Military Academy, Webb School and received his undergraduate degree from Pomona College in 1961. He began his career at General Motors as an engine test engineer, followed by a brief tour with the U.S. Navy. After leaving the Navy, Marshall worked for the New York investment banking firm of Loeb Rhodes. He used this experience later when he entered the securities brokerage business in the 1980s.

Beginning in 1969, Marshall moved to Houston to manage various investment projects with his father, including various roles at Koch Industries, International Oil&Gas and Marshall Petroleum. While continuing to work with his father he also worked with his father-in-law. In 1981, after his father-in-law's passing, he was elected Chairman of the Electron Corporation (an iron foundry concern). Later, he was appointed President of Electron and led the company through a successful turnaround, saving over 300 jobs in Colorado and Oklahoma. When his father's health began to deteriorate in 1993, he ceased his securities brokerage business, delegated his responsibilities at Electron and assumed operational responsibilities at Marshall Petroleum.

J. Howard died in 1995, leaving Pierce the bulk of the family fortune. In 2001, a jury in Texas upheld the estate and rejected all claims against him.^[2] However, Smith's legal dispute with Pierce in federal court yielded decisions both for him and against him. The issue of the probate exception reached the U.S. Supreme Court, which ruled in favor of Smith (Marshall v. Marshall). The federal case has been remanded to the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals to adjudicate appellate issues not previously reached.

In 2005, Forbes magazine estimated his fortune at $1.7 billion, a valuation he rejected.^[3] Marshall was one of three voting shareholders of Koch Industries when he died of a brief but aggressive infection on June 20, 2006, aged 67. He is survived by his widow, Elaine Marshall, who now represents his estate. ^[4]

In a 9 February 2007 interview with Fox News Channel's John Gibson, Rusty Hardin, the family's attorney, said that the family would wait until Smith's immediate affairs in the wake of her sudden death are disclosed before discussing the status of litigation.