Director of Getty Trust Resigns

J. Paul Getty died in 1976 and was, at the time, the richest person in the United States.

A considerable portion of Getty’s fortune was used to create the J. Paul Getty Trust which runs the J. Paul Getty Museum, the Getty Research Institute, the Getty Conservation Institute, and the Getty Foundation.

Previously on this blog, I have reported on problems with the trust such as allegations that one or more of the trustees may have made inappropriate expenditures in breach of their duties such as first-class airline tickets, staying in lavish hotels, and renting high-end cars such as a Porsche Cayenne.

The president of the trust, Barry Munitz, resigned on February 9, 2006.  It is reported that he will “be required to repay the trust $250,000 and would not be given a severance package. The money was an estimate of what the trust felt Mr. Munitz owed because of perks, expenses and other costs that should not have been charged to the trust during his eight-year tenure.”

See Randy Kennedy & Carol Vogel, Pressured, Director of Getty Trust Steps Down, NY Times, Feb. 10, 2006.

The investigation of the situation by the California Attorney General is continuing.