We're concluding our story of the son and daughter of Irvin Feld, the man who owned the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus for less than 20 years before he died. His son, who now lives in Florida, inherited the business and his properties. His daughter inherited next to nothing.

The two are now litigating the daughter's personal injury claim against her brother. In our last post, we described her version of events at her aunt's shiva service. Here, we're going to give the son's version (according to court documents). The players are Kenneth and Karen.

He says. Kenneth's story, according to his counterclaim, is quite different. Only a few rooms and the front bathroom of the apartment were open during the shiva. When Karen stood up during the service, he says she tried to get to a bedroom that was not open to visitors.

It wasn't open because the room was where family heirlooms and important documents were stored. The guards say they were told to keep Karen out of there. Her sister-in-law believed she'd take something.

Karen's interaction with the guards was nothing like the incident she explained, Kenneth says. The guard approached her, and she flew into a rage, yelling profanities and hurling a glass of wine at him.

The guard escorted her into the hallway. She continued to yell. When Kenneth came out to try to calm her down, she took a swing at him. Realizing he was making the matter worse, Kenneth returned to the apartment.

Moments later, the guard saw her out of the building.

The court says. The trial is barely under way, so it could be a while before we know how this all turns out. From the court documents and Karen's statements to the press, it seems that the case could air every detail of family history that Kenneth has tried to keep private. Unfortunately, it could also highlight every real or perceived insult, reopening old wounds instead of making things right, finally, between the two.

We're not sure it's fair to say that the Felds' troubles began with their father's will. Perhaps the dispute is typified by the way the estate was divided up. Irvin Feld's plans for his son, and his outright dismissal of his daughter in his estate plan may have been the logical continuation of a family feud that started years before his death.

It's sad to think that the circus has moved from the big top to the courtroom.

Source: TheState.com (South Carolina), "Ringling heirs go to trial over bereavement fight," Nedra Pickler, 05/05/2011