Nearly two years after One Direction singer Liam Payne died after falling from a hotel balcony in Buenos Aires, Argentina, his young son Bear Grey Payne has been named the sole beneficiary of his estate.
According to legal documents obtained by TMZ, Bear has been awarded Payne's estate totaling nearly $28 million. Some of the money can be used now, but most of it is held in a trust until Bear turns 18.
The estate also includes Payne's five-bedroom home in Chalfont St Giles, Buckinghamshire, England - a property he purchased in 2021 to be closer to Bear after splitting with Cheryl Cole in 2018.
Payne was just 31 years old when he died in October 2024. He passed away without a will, leaving his estate intestate. Singer Cheryl Cole - Bear's mother - and music lawyer Richard Bray were named as administrators of Payne's estate, giving them the authority to collect and preserve his assets.
Last year, the BBC reported that Cole and Bray had been granted limited authority over Payne's estate and could make decisions regarding his money, property, and personal belongings, but could not distribute the funds - until now.
Liam's girlfriend at the time of his death, influencer Kate Cassidy, does not intend to make any claim against the estate, according to The Sun.
When Liam passed, Cheryl released a heartfelt statement asking the world to remember the man behind the headlines. "Liam was not only a pop star and celebrity, he was a son, a brother, an uncle, a dear friend and a father to our 7-year-old son," she wrote. "A son that now has to face the reality of never seeing his father again."
Bear is now 9. Whatever the years ahead hold, his father made sure - through the life he built - that his son would be provided for. It is a painful kind of legacy, but a legacy nonetheless. For those who have prayed for this family since October 2024, today's news is a small but meaningful step toward closure.
