Key facts
- Danny Nozick, Parton's longtime manager, filed the suit against Bryan Seaver and his firm Squadron Augmented Protection Services.
- The suit alleged threats, intimidation and coercion, and sought a temporary restraining order that a judge granted.
- Seaver denied the allegations and said he was 'grateful to put this misunderstanding behind him' in a statement to CBS News.
- Seaver, Parton's nephew and former head of security, confirmed her death in August 2026.
Danny Nozick, the longtime manager of country music star Dolly Parton, has dropped a lawsuit against her nephew Bryan Seaver, according to a BBC report published on November 7, 2026. The suit included allegations of threats, intimidation and coercion and sought a temporary restraining order, which a judge had granted.
Seaver, who previously served as Parton's head of security and is the son of Parton's sister Cassie, denied the allegations. In a statement to the BBC's US partner CBS News, Seaver's attorneys said he was "grateful to put this misunderstanding behind him so that the family can grieve peacefully."
Seaver owns the security firm Squadron Augmented Protection Services, which provided security to Parton for the final 20 years of her life. Parton died of cancer in August 2026 at age 80. Weeks after Seaver confirmed her death, both he and his company were dismissed by She's Alive, which manages Parton's estate.
Nozick, who heads She's Alive, filed for the restraining order against Seaver and his company. In court filings, he accused Seaver of "an obscene, deliberate and escalating campaign of threats" after demanding payment from the estate. The documents included messages in which Seaver allegedly threatened to damage Parton's brand and business interests if his demands were not met. The filings also alleged that Seaver used his experience as a military contractor to intimidate employees. Seaver denied threatening the estate and said in a statement published by TMZ at the time that he was a "career soldier and military contractor" but insisted he had simply been "talking frankly in a private way with Danny who I thought was my friend."