The widow and children of the late Sugar Minott have decided to bury the hatchet and present a unified front as the family prepares for an impending court date with the Administrator General to wrap up the affairs of the deceased singer’s estate in July.

Maxine Stowe, Minott’s widow, welcomed the family’s new approach.

“Primarily, we buried the hatchet as we saw there are no winners if there is a court-ordered sale of the estate that would be the eventual outcome. Under the glare and questioning of the judge’s review, the hatchet was shown to be not of our own making. There were some missteps by a lawyer who also withdrew from the case,” Maxine Stowe told Observer Online.

The last court date for the estate was May 16. The final hearing is set for July 29.

For years, several of Minott’s children and Stowe have been at loggerheads over matters concerning his estate and his life-celebration event.

The late reggae singer married music executive Stowe in 1993. At the time, she was working at Columbia Records. The couple had met at Coxsone’s Music City in Brooklyn, New York, in 1978, where they collaborated and produced the album Roots Lovers. They remained married until his death at 54.

“Our respective lawyers are now mediating the next steps to conclude the way forward with the Administrator General for the upcoming hearing,” Stowe said.

Pashon welcomed an end to the hostilities.

“July 29th should be the final day. Hopefully, everything goes according to plan. It’s been a struggle with the Administrator General; they don’t know how to manage musicians’ estates, and we’re ready to take it from the AG,” she said.

This state of affairs is a far cry from the battle lines of the past. Last year, there was a much-publicised altercation between Stowe and some of Minott’s children over a trophy awarded by the Jamaica Reggae Industry Association (JaRIA) at its red carpet gala ceremony on April 10. The late Sugar Minott was honoured with a mentorship award for his commitment to youth development.

Pashon, who was once Stowe’s most vocal critic, is ready to let peace reign.

“Maxine and I, and a few of my siblings, have been in dialogue. We want everything to be under one umbrella, and I know that once Maxine and I are in constant dialogue and on great terms, things will move along well,” said Pashon, whose mother had four kids with Minott.

Pashon painted a portrait of unity in the family that all went south when her father died.

“We’re trying to come to some common ground, to finally put love first – something I have always been doing – that is what Daddy is and was about. We were raised with love as children,” she mused.

“We never fight when he was alive. We’re finding our way back to the love we were raised on. This is a situation where we have more than one mother, with multiple children. We had a situation where all these siblings are coming in; my mother welcomed them as they came in, so we’re finding our way back to love,” Pashon added.

Since Minott’s death, there were competing claims, thus the matter was deadlocked in court. As a result, there was no way to arrange for a sale of the estate or apportioning of the assets.

Singer, producer and sound system operator, Sugar Minott, died on July 10, 2010. He was known for his altruism and his relentless advocacy on behalf of ghetto youths. Many artists benefited from Youth Man Promotions and the mentorship of Minott, including Yami Bolo, Junior Reid, Tenor Saw, and Nitty Gritty.

Following the family’s apparent amends, a birthday celebration is being planned to commemorate the late singer’s 68th birthday.

Stowe noted that though the family has had their issues in the past, they are now working together with only one goal in mind and that is to build on Minott’s brand. There are also plans to establish a Sugar Minott museum.