A battle has begun over Anne Heche‘s estate, and the first salvo has been fired in a Los Angeles court.

Heche died following a fiery car crash last month and reportedly passed without a will.

Entertainment Tonight reports that James Tupper, the actress’s ex-boyfriend and the father of her 13-year-old son, Atlas Heche Tupper, has objected to a request from Heche’s eldest son to be placed in charge of the estate.

Twenty-year-old Homer Heche Laffoon is Heche’s son with ex-husband Coley Lafoon, to whom she was married from 2001 to 2009.

For his part, Tupper submitted paperwork he says proves Heche wanted him to be in control of her estates, including an email purportedly from Heche with the subject line “WILL.”

According to papers obtained by ET, the email from Heche reportedly says, “In case I die tomorrow and anyone asks. My wishes are that all of my assets go to the control of Mr. James Tupper to be used to raise my children and then given to the children. They will be divided equally among our children, currently Homer Heche Laffoon and Atlas Heche Tupper, and their portion given to each when they are the age of 25.”

The Six Days, Seven Nights star suffered severe blunt force injuries, as well as severe “inhalation and thermal injuries,” when she crashed her blue Mini Cooper into a Mar Vista, California, home at high speed on August 5.

The car burst into flames with the actress still inside, and the wreck set the home on fire around her. She was subsequently declared brain-dead. Representatives noted she was taken off life support on August 15.

Copyright © 2022, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.