King siblings settle lawsuit over estate

? After more than 14 hours of discussion, the heirs of the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. reached a settlement late Monday that will keep the family from a public jury trial.

Martin Luther King III, Bernice King and Dexter King had aired their grievances in open court for more than a year. The siblings began negotiations Monday morning as the threat loomed of a civil trial that was expected to reveal personal and financial details about King Inc.

Dexter King’s brother and sister sued him in July 2008, accusing him of acting improperly as head of the their father’s estate, which the three of them control as a private corporation. In the lawsuit, they claimed he shut them out of decisions involving King Inc. and refused to hold a shareholders meeting since 2004. The three have been largely estranged for months as Martin Luther King III and Bernice King said their brother continued to make decisions on behalf of King Inc. without their input or knowledge.

Monday’s agreement signals the end of a legal feud among the siblings and could clear the way for private relations to thaw.