Nick Reiner, the 32-year-old son of filmmaker Rob Reiner and producer Michele Singer Reiner has accused his siblings of breaking a verbal agreement to fund his legal defense as he awaits trial for the December 2025 killing of his parents.
Nick faces the two counts of first-degree murder in connection with his parents’ stabbing deaths and has pleaded not guilty.
In a petition filed on Monday, June 8, Nick leveled the allegations against his older brother Jake Reiner and his younger sister Romy Reiner. He demands access to the $1.5 million trust fund which was established by his parents and he wants to use it to re-hire high-profile attorney Alan Jackson.
What Nick claims happened
According to the probate petition, Jackson originally agreed to take on Nick’s defense on the understanding that his siblings would act as a third-party payers for his fees. In a declaration supporting Nick’s petition, Jackson wrote that, “Mr. Reiner’s siblings participated in communications concerning the representation and agreed verbally to act as third-party payors for Mr. Reiner’s defense. The family representative and family members assured me that the retainer agreement would be promptly returned and that the agreed-upon funds would be promptly paid,” per People.
Jackson added, “My decision to proceed was based on my understanding that Mr. Reiner had retained my firm and that the agreed-upon fee would be funded by third-party payors.” However, in late December 2025, a family representative informed Jackson that none of the anticipated funding would be provided, per People.
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“That position was inconsistent with the prior assurances on which my firm had relied. Without an available source of funding, continued private representation by my firm was no longer feasible,” Jackson added.
In a May 11 email written on Nick’s behalf, his attorney Anita P Wu told the trustee of the trust fund that Jackson’s fees “were negotiated and agreed to by Nick’s siblings on his behalf before they reversed that commitment”. Jackson also stated he remains “committed to representing” Nick and is “willing to consider reasonable alternatives to the original fee arrangement.”
What happens next, how Jake Reiner responded?
Nick is due back in court on September 15, at which point a date for his probable cause hearing may be set, according to Parade.
Meanwhile, his brother Jake has spoken publicly about the loss of their parents for the first time. In an Instagram post on April 24, Jake wrote: “A week from today will be my first birthday without my parents. I consider myself lucky to have had them by my side for the past 34 years. In the last four months, I’ve learned a lot about grief,” per Parade.
In a Substack essay, Jake elaborated on the devastating impact of losing both parents at once. “I was robbed of so many things that day. My parents won’t be at my wedding, they won’t get to hold their future grandchild, and they won’t get to see me have the successful career I’m still seeking. It simultaneously breaks my heart and enrages me,” he wrote.
“Nothing can prepare you for what it feels like to lose both parents instantly at the same time. It’s too devastating to comprehend. I still wake up every morning having to convince myself that, no, it’s not a dream. This truly is my living nightmare,” he added.
