DOVER, Del. — A Delaware judge has refused to dismiss a lawsuit filed by former business advisers to the late pop music icon Prince against two of his siblings and other heirs in a dispute over his estate.

The judge on Friday also agreed with plaintiffs L. Londell McMillan and Charles Spicer Jr. that an agreement purporting to replacing them as managers of a limited liability company established by three siblings was invalid.

Prince died of an accidental fentanyl overdose in 2016. He had no will, and his six siblings inherited equal interests in the estate.

Three of them assigned their combined 50% interest to Prince Legacy LLC. They also granted McMillan and Spicer each a 10% interest in Prince Legacy, along with broad and exclusive management authority.

One sister, Sharon Nelson, later regretted the decision and led an effort to remove McMillan and Spicer as managing members by amending the LLC agreement.

Chancellor Kathaleen St. Jude McCormick ruled that the terms of the initial LLC agreement are unambiguous and that they prohibit the defendants’ attempts to amend it. She said the agreement remains in effect and McMillan and Spicer remain as managing members.

“As a matter of contract law, this is the only reasonable interpretation,” the judge wrote.

McCormick also ruled that the plaintiffs can pursue a claim that the defendants breached the LLC agreement by acting without authorization to amend it and remove McMillan and Spicer.

The lawsuit stems from disagreements involving Tyka Nelson, Prince’s sister, and five half-siblings: Sharon Nelson, Norrine Nelson, John R. Nelson, Omarr Baker and Alfred Jackson.

Tyka, Omarr and Alfred, the three youngest, sold their stake to a music publishing company called Primary Wave Music, LLC, which later assigned its interests to an affiliate, Prince OAT Holdings LLC. Alfred has since died.

The older siblings, Sharon, Norrine and John, assigned 20% of their collective interests to McMillan and Spicer before John died in 2021. His interests passed to a trust overseen by Breanna Nelson, Allen Nelson and Johnny Nicholas Nelson Torres as co-trustees. Breanna and Allen are named as defendants in the lawsuit along with Sharon and Norrine, while Nelson Torres has sided with the plaintiffs.

The lawsuit alleges among other things that Sharon improperly tried to insert herself into management decisions and once demanded that the entire staff of the Paisley Park Museum in Minnesota be replaced. She also accused McMillan and Spicer of fraud and tried to sell her interests in Prince Legacy without the required consent of the other members.

The lawsuit is part of a long and convoluted legal battle involving both the size and the beneficiaries of Prince’s estate. In 2022, nearly six years after his death, the Internal Revenue Service and the administrator of the estate agreed to end a court battle and value the estate at roughly $156 million.

100 Years Ago, 1924: Irving Goldberg and Lewis Sohat, 919 Simpson St., Eddystone, were arrested Thursday night in a raid made by County Detective John O’Toole, Sergeant Kaufman and State Troopers Walsh and Powell, and Detective James Meli. A 125-gallon still was found on the third floor, with 70 barrels of mash, and 20 gallons of whiskey. Prior to the raid, David Scrigler was arrested on the Chester Pike. Between 30 and 40 gallons of rum was found in his possession.

75 Years Ago, 1949: Delaware County’s long July 4 holiday weekend was marred by traffic accidents and other mishaps, and many persons had to be sent to local hospitals for treatment of their injuries. A belated rush, however, caused a snarl today at the Bridgeport terminal of Chester-Bridgeport Ferry Co. Beginning at 6 a.m. homeward-bound motorists were lined up for several blocks and crossings were delayed as much as 15 minutes. Louis J. Kapelski, executive manager, said that during the night, when the peak of traffic was believed over, one of the ferry boats was taken out of operation and the crew given a day off.

50 Years Ago, 1974: Thursday’s heat came from more than the fireworks on our nation’s 198th birthday. Temperatures soared to 94, six degrees short of the July 4 record of 100 set in 1919. The sunny skies and hot and humid weather of this morning has a 50 percent chance of turning into thunderstorms this afternoon and evening. The storms may be accompanied by some hail and high winds, according to the National Weather Service in Philadelphia.

25 Years Ago, 1999: Kenn Stark, a reporter for Town Talk newspaper, was recently named a winner in Journal Register Company’s Editorial Excellence Awards. Stark, of Aston, won third place in the Community Human Interest Division for a personal commentary called “Big Brother Is Watching You … And Your Little Dog, Too.” The article was about a controversial policy for licensing pets in the county.

10 Years Ago, 2014: Legislation sponsored by state Senate Majority Leader Dominic Pileggi to freeze school property taxes for senior citizens will be one of the first bills to be debated when state lawmakers return from summer recess later this year. Pileggi, R-9 of Chester, wants to freeze property taxes for homeowners age 65 and older. His bill, Senate Bill 299, is known as the Taxpayer Relief Act, but it does not specifically address ways to pay for the freeze. One possibility mentioned by Pileggi is legalizing keno-style lottery games. Keno is an electronic numbers game.

— COLIN AINSWORTH