One of the most publicized probate disputes will come before the Supreme Court once again.

The Supreme Court has agreed to review the ongoing probate dispute between the estate of the late model and actress Anna Nicole Smith and the estate of her late husband. Smith, who died more than three years ago, had been fighting for years to receive a share of her late husband's estate. Her estate is continuing the fight to receive part of the billionaire oilman's fortune.

Smith married the billionaire when she was 26 years old and her husband, a Yale-educated businessman, was 89. He died in 1995, 14 months after their marriage. Smith claims he promised to give her $300 million. His will, however, left nearly all of his assets to his son from a previous marriage, E. Pierce Marshall. The son died in 2006, a year before Smith's death, resulting in two estates fighting over the frozen assets of another estate.

The justices will decide whether Smith's estate received a proper hearing in federal courts, or whether state probate courts are the proper venue for hearing such cases. There is something called the "probate exception" that usually prevents federal courts from hearing probate disputes. However, there is no law that mandates this approach.

Both state and federal courts have disagreed over whether Smith was entitled to any part of her late husband's estate. She was awarded $474 million by a U.S. Bankruptcy judge, which was later reduced to about $90 million. A state probate court and a federal appeals court have since dismissed Smith's case.

The Supreme Court will only consider this issue, and will not delve into other matters raised in her past court proceedings.

This is not the first time this case has come before the Supreme Court. In 2006, the court allowed Smith to continue her legal battle, representing a temporary victory in the drawn-out case.

Source: CNN.com "Justices to again review probate dispute by Anna Nicole Smith's estate" 9/28/10