His estate's administrators have used $159 million to pay down the pop star's debt, which when Jackson died amounted to more than $400 million, court records show. "Although there remain unresolved creditor claims, pending litigation and additional challenging business, tax and legal issues, and the estate is not yet in a condition to be closed, the executors have made substantial progress in reducing the estate's debt," the documents state.

The records, which were made public as part of the estate's probate proceedings, are the most detailed accounting yet of the finances of Jackson's estate from his death until Dec. 31, 2010. Beneficiaries of the estate are Jackson's children, his mother and various charities. Attorney John Branca and music executive John McClain were namd administrators in a will the "Thriller" singer signed before he died in June 2009 from an overdose of drugs, most prominently the anesthetic propofol.