Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Mitchell L. Beckloff Monday granted Katherine Jackson temporary custody of Prince Michael Jr., 12; Paris Michael Katherine, 11; and Prince Michael II, 7.
Rowe delivered the two older children. The youngest was born to a surrogate mother whose identity has not been revealed.
According to papers filed in Los Angeles Superior Court, Jackson's three children are the sole beneficiaries of his estate, which is worth hundreds of millions of dollars, even though the pop icon was reported to own some $400 million when he died Thursday at the age of 50.
Beckloff Monday also appointed Katherine Jackson special administrator of her son's estate to protect its assets, including the singer's Beatles catalog, from third parties.
The judge ordered that a hearing be held July 6 to consider permanent arrangements regarding both the estate and the children.
Rowe is considering whether to seek custody or continued visitation rights. Her attorney, Eric George, told the Los Angeles Times that Rowe will decide within the next several days how to respond to Katherine Jackson's petition for temporary custody.
Rowe, who was married to Jackson for a time, initially signed a contract with him giving up her parental rights, but she later challenged the agreement, which was thrown out by an appeals court in 2006. Jackson retained custody of the children while Rowe was given visitation rights.
Any attempt to wrest the children from Katherine Jackson likely would focus in part on her age and her health. Apparently expecting a fight, Jackson's attorneys have argued in court filings that Rowe has had no relationship with her children, and that giving her custody would cause them harm.
Rowe, a former nurse who met Jackson while working for a dermatologist who was treating the singer, could face her own challenges if she seeks custody of Prince Michael Jr. and Paris Michael Katherine.
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Further complicating matters, according to TMZ, Jackson never filed papers to adopt his three children.
Court papers filed in the case indicate that Katherine Jackson is anticipating a tussle not only over the children but also over the estate, with her lawyers asserting that they do not know of a will but that it was possible that someone will emerge claiming to have one.
A police investigation, meanwhile, was continuing into the circumstances of Jackson's death. A law enforcement source told The Times that LAPD detectives are interviewing an unknown number of doctors who treated or prescribed medication to Jackson.
Police and coroner's officials yesterday removed medical evidence from the Holmby Hills mansion where Jackson died. Significant quantities of prescription medications were also taken from the mansion last week, The Times reported.
The Times' source stressed that detectives don't know whether prescriptions played a role in the pop star's death but said they hope to get a better understanding of his medical condition and the types of medications he took.
As of today, no funeral and memorial services have been announced. Jackson's father, Joe, told reporters outside the family's Encino estate Monday that the family was still looking for answers about why the singer died.
"We're not ready for that yet, because we're trying to wait on something else," Joe Jackson said in reference to memorial ceremonies. "We're searching to see what happened to Michael. .... We don't have the time frame yet 'cuz I want to see how the autopsy's coming out, you know, the second autopsy. They're doing it right now and I'm expecting to hear about it real soon."
The Los Angeles County coroner performed an autopsy last week, but the results were deferred pending toxicology tests, which could take four to six weeks. The family commissioned a second, private autopsy in hopes of getting results faster.
Jackson went into full cardiac arrest Thursday at his rented Holmby Hills estate, days away from the scheduled start of a sold-out series of 50 concerts in London. Paramedics were unable to revive him, and he was pronounced dead two hours later at UCLA Medical Center.
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