Gibbs & Associates in New York

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  Krista Errickson

  :: 09 December 2013 22:33:26

  My grandfather, Jo Mielziner was the most celebrated theatre set designers of the 20th century. He died in March, 1976 outside of his Dakota apartment. Bud H. Gibbs was, and is, the executor of the estate. And, as incredulous as this may sound – my father’s estate is STILL open, in 2013. A $5 million dollar estate and my grandfather's art collection were at stake. Gibbs never provided a full inventory- including some of the most valuable artworks: Renoirs', Degas', a Buddha head from the Great Wall of China, Ivory crucifixes, even his crystal chandelier. All of his personal jewelry, gold coin collection - gone. The safe that he kept it in was left open, and empty. My grandfather also had a list of charities that he wished to bequeath sums, including our family church, the Church of St. Francis of Assisi in New York, but the charities were never notified, and never saw a dime. I contacted the Assistant Attorney General of NY State in charge of charities, who told me it was up to the charities to get their bequest. My lawyer contacted the charities directly, and made them aware of the bequest, and the amount left to them, but they were also ignored. In 1978, Gibbs sold my grandfather's Dakota apartment to a personal friend of theirs for $40,0000. In fact, desperate interested parties who wished to see the apartment had resorted to writing my Uncles because their phone calls were never returned. $40,000 for an apartment in the Dakota. Models of his famous sets, in delicate balsa wood, were put in the building's storage carelessly, and as a result, were destroyed. When inventoried artwork was sold, we were never provided with receipts for sales, or, who they were sold to. The surrogate courts, my uncles, my mother, and I repeatedly asked Bud H. Gibbs at Gibbs and Associates for annual accountings, which he ignored, and continues to do so, as of this writing, into end of December, 2013. Of the $5 million dollars to be distributed, only $700,000 was released. Yet, Gibbs made sure he paid himself, off the top, every year. During the 80's, in the mortgage crisis, my mother called Gibbs, and begged him to please release money, because she was losing her house. He hung up on her. All the attorneys hired to sue him ended up frustrated, angry, and in the end, quit because Gibbs was "rude and obstinate”. He refused to acknowledge letters, and phone calls, and he knew "if he just waited them out, they'd give up". He has been in contempt of court, five times on this estate. He is in contempt of court presently for failure to distribute, failure to provide an accounting, failure to distribute to the charities. Two years ago, another crusader attorney took up the cause to sue Bud Gibbs. We provided photos of the missing art pieces, documented from magazine clippings with my father and the art behind him, or next to him; we requested another accounting; we requested a final accounting. We asked: where are the receipts for the artwork he sold? Where the missing items? Where did the money go? WHY is this estate, after 40 years, still open? And, once again, Gibbs ignored the judgment against him. Three months ago, my tenacious, dedicated lawyer finally gave up, the surrogate judge refuses to put an 84 year old man in jail. He is, "a man without morals", my lawyer told me. “He will never close your father’s estate. Eddie Kook died in 1990, and his estate is still open. That’s his secret. To never be held accountable”. White collar crime is very different. This man, instead, sits on several boards, and is a multi-millionaire.