Billionaire media tycoon, 93, attempting to secure Lachlan Murdoch’s control rather than assets going to all children

Rupert Murdoch is in a secret legal battle pitching the ageing mogul and his heir apparent, Lachlan Murdoch, against three of his other children, according to documents seen by the New York Times.

Murdoch, 93, is attempting to secure Lachlan Murdoch’s control of the family’s media empire by changing the terms of a family trust that would have also given younger brother James, sister Elisabeth and half-sister Prudence a say in how the company is run.

Currently, the trust would hand control of the billionaire media tycoon’s sprawling empire to his four eldest children when he dies. But according to sealed court documents obtained by the New York Times, Murdoch is arguing that Lachlan should have sole control of the family’s investments in Fox News, the Wall Street Journal, the New York Post, the Australian and other assets, including the Sun and the Times in the UK.

Lachlan Murdoch is seen as the most conservative of Murdoch’s children and his father is arguing that his political beliefs are essential to maintaining the value of the right-leaning media company.