Gary Coleman's Ex Goes After Control of His Estate

Shannon Price, calling herself the actor's common-law wife, objects to the executor named in Coleman's will, Dion Mial

Gary Coleman's parents said that they would respect whatever their son's last wishes were, according to his will. Coleman's ex-wife, not so much.

Macabre photographer Shannon Price, who was legally divorced from the actor in 2008 but remained his companion until his death last month, filed court documents Thursday in an attempt to wrest control of Coleman's estate away from the executor he named in his will, Dion Mial.

"She doesn't want everything to go to Dion," Price spokeswoman Shielia Erickson told the Salt Lake Tribune. "We have a retained a high-profile attorney. We have enough documentation that shows that everything will go to Shannon."

Price wasn't mentioned in Coleman's initial will, which he made out in 1999, long before they even met.

Calling her his common-law wife, Price's filing also includes a hand-written document, purportedly drawn up by Coleman in 2007, that names her sole beneficiary.

The 2007 codicil did leave his remaining assets to Price, his spouse at the time, but the document was rendered null and void when they divorced, according to Salt Lake City attorney, Kent Alderman, who represents Mial.

The hand-written amendment filed with the petition today calls Price the "sole heir of any and all monies, properties, bank accounts, earnings, model trains, vehicles, cars, toys, games, electronics, homes, other inheritances if any, all things physical and/or intellectual."

"This I have done because of my personal selfishness and weakness and I Love her with all my heart," reads Coleman's purported statement.

Price calls "disposition of the body" the most pressing matter at hand, though Coleman stated in his will that he wished to be cremated.

As for the common-law wife thing, Utah does recognize such arrangements, but state law stipulates the couples have to file a request to be treated like a married couple as far as taxes and other legal issues go.

(Originally published June 10, 2010, at 4:02 p.m. PT)