Tony Marshall, Brooke Astor’s son, and lawyer Francis X. Morrissey Jr. are scheduled to go on trial in mid-January 2009 on charges of looting Mrs. Astor’s estate. This site will carry regular updates on the Astor legal maneuverings.

In other Astor-related news, WWD reports that the price on Brooke Astor’s apartment at 778 Park Avenue has been cut from an initial listing of $46 million to $35 million. Although many provisions of Brooke Astor’s will are being contested in surrogate’s court, Tony Marshall is the undisputed heir to his mother’s apartment as well as her Holly Hill estate in Briarcliff Manor, New York, currently said to be on the market for $12 million. All proceeds from the real estate will go to Tony Marshall, regardless of the outcomes in either of the criminal and surrogate court cases.