Dolly Parton Estate Dispute: Manager Seeks Restraining Order

Dolly Parton’s manager has filed court documents seeking a temporary restraining order against her nephew and longtime security chief, Bryan Seaver, accusing him of making threatening remarks toward the manager.

The Daily Mail reviewed a case summary showing that Parton’s manager, Danny Nozell, brought the case through Parton’s company, She’s Alive, LLC. The filing requests a restraining order against Seaver.

According to legal documents reviewed by TMZ, Nozell claimed that Seaver demanded money from him while referring to his self-described experience as a military contractor, his access to weapons and his alleged capacity for violence.

Nozell told the court that he subsequently dismissed Seaver from his position on September 15, the outlet reported.

The filing further alleges that Seaver’s conduct became increasingly serious in the weeks before Parton’s August 25 death at age 80, according to TMZ.

The Daily Mail has contacted Bryan Seaver, Danny Nozell and Nozell’s attorney, Timothy L. Warnock, for comment.

In documents reviewed by TMZ, Seaver allegedly told Nozell: “Her money better be bigger than I can make elsewhere or I’m going to f*** everyone. I am about to become the hand of retribution for my entire family.”

A separate message allegedly sent by Seaver stated: “All I do is warfare … everyone needs to be worried about what I might do.”

Seaver also allegedly said he planned to launch a podcast aimed at damaging Dolly Parton’s brand partnerships and exposing what he described as violations committed against him and his family, according to the court filing cited by TMZ.

Nozell has asked the court to order Seaver to stay at least 1,000 feet away from Parton’s office and to bar him from contacting the singer’s businesses or affiliates, the report said.

Responding to the restraining order request, Seaver told TMZ on Tuesday: “I am a career soldier and military contractor and do conduct arms deals for foreign governments. I am a security professional and I am a killer.

“However, nothing in this lawsuit were threats and most of the comments I stand by.”

Seaver maintained that the text messages included in the filing had been taken out of context to make him appear intimidating, insisting that was not his intention.

“I was talking frankly in a private way with Danny who I thought was my friend and he fancies himself a gangster,” Bryan told the outlet. “A lot of these messages are two guys having rage talk and crying on the phone together while we were grieving.”

Seaver said a separate remark, in which he allegedly threatened to “rat f***” an organization whose name was redacted, referred to people he believed had treated Parton badly in business.

“Those comments were about specific, horrible business partners that have done wrong to her and I stand by that,” he added.

Seaver received a notice last week, reviewed by TMZ, stating that he and his security companies had been replaced by another firm. His organizations had provided protection for Parton’s Nashville home, museum and warehouse.

Insiders told the outlet that they believed Parton’s manager Nozell and Pinnacle Bank were responsible for the decision to terminate him and his employees.

A new security team was deployed to the locations previously overseen by Seaver’s companies on Wednesday after the termination notice was issued, according to the report.

Sources close to Seaver said he and his associates had been ‘dismayed by the unexpected and, so far, unexplained actions’ carried out in the wake of Parton’s passing.

‘We remain unshakably resolved to fulfill her final directive to protect her family, and we refuse to be intimidated by those whose actions we believe are being taken in bad faith,’ Seaver’s camp told TMZ.

His camp told the outlet they believed the actions had been taken ‘with the intent to profit from the life of someone who willingly gave so much.’

According to the outlet, the notice issued to Seaver indicated that the DP Dean Trust had been overseeing Parton’s business and properties in the wake of her passing.

Seaver retains a personal interest in her trust moving forward, according to the report.

Seaver, whose mother Cassie is Parton’s sister, had been appointed by the late Jolene singer to reveal her death in a public statement.

Following Dolly’s August 25 passing following a battle with cancer, Seaver had been seen in a clip in which he revealed the sad news.

‘Dolly has lived in the light, and is in the arms of Jesus, surely met by [late husband] Carl, her parents, and countless others who have watched her and longed for her to meet them in the heavens,’ Seaver said in the emotional clip.

In the clip, Seaver noted that his father Larry had held the security position before him.

He said that he had been her security head for the past ‘two decades,’ and had been working for her over the past four decades. 

‘I first went on the road with Dolly as a kid, getting a taste of the road life in the early 1980s,’ Seaver said. ‘Dolly opened doors not just for me, but for her entire family to reach the potential we didn’t even know was possible.

‘Dolly also opened doors for generations of singers, songwriters, musicians and dreamers from every walk of life and across every continent. By her example, we believed that anything was possible.’

He added, ‘She never saw a door she couldn’t open, and the doors she opened made and changed history. My family and I have shared a lifetime of beautiful memories with Dolly, but so have you.’

Parton has been well-remembered in the near month since her passing, which included an expansive tribute at the Primetime Emmy Awards last week which featured Reba McEntire and Sally Field.

Nashville International Airport will be renamed in Parton’s memory following a vote from the Metro Nashville Airport Authority Board of Commissioners weeks back.