A fierce custody battle is brewing over two of Michael Jackson's children, with their mother relaying word Thursday that she plans to fight for them in court, and the Jackson family signaling they will fight right back.
Debbie Rowe, the mother of Prince, 12, and Paris, 11, spoke to her former attorney Iris Finsilver, who says, "She is going to be pursuing custody of the children."
"Frankly, she won't have to fight for them," Finsilver told People. "She is the children's biological mother. She loves her children."
The kids, along with a third child, Prince Michael II (Blanket), 7, whose mother is unknown, are in the temporary court-ordered care of Jackson family matriarch Katherine Jackson, 79, whom the singer named as guardian in his 2002 will. (Diana Ross was also named, in the event that Katherine was no longer living.)
A source close to the Jackson family says they intend to seek permanent custody. "They will fight," says the source.
Rowe earlier made her position clear July 2 in an interview with a Los Angeles television station, saying, "I want my children."
"I am stepping up," she told a reporter for Los Angeles station NBC 4 in a 90-minute phone conversation. "I have to."
Rowe also said she'd be willing to take custody of Blanket to keep the three children together, and she may seek a restraining order to keep her former father-in-law, Joe Jackson, away from her children.
In the wake of Michael Jackson's death, Debbie Rowe, the singer's ex-wife and mother of his two eldest kids, has left multiple messages for the Jackson family in hopes of getting in touch – though she's been unsuccessful – a friend told People.
"We've been trying to reach them at different numbers," says Marc Schaffel, a former Jackson business associate who's close with Rowe. "But we don't know if who we've been leaving messages with have gotten the messages."
Rowe is the legal parent of Prince Michael, 12, and Paris, 11, and can get custody of them if she chooses. Jackson's third child, Blanket, 7, was born to an unnamed surrogate.
But the children's grandmother, Katherine Jackson, was granted temporary guardianship on Monday after filing a petition in Los Angeles Probate Court. In the 22-page document, Katherine claims the kids "have no relationship with their biological mother" and "have a long established relationship" with her since Michael's death.
"In all fairness I wouldn't say they are avoiding her," Schaffel says, adding that Rowe usually contacts the family through Jackson's business office. "Our understanding, though, is that the Jackson family does want to have contact with Debbie."
Schaffel says there were "several reasons" why Rowe reached out, including wanting "to offer her input into a venue where they could have a public memorial."
"Debbie was absolutely devastated by Michael's death," he says. "They had an incredible bond and friendship even prior to the marriage...Debbie was a very good friend to Michael during all those years."
While Schaffel won't comment on whether Rowe has had contact with the kids the past few days, "Debbie understands it's a very difficult time for everybody involved, including the children," he says. "I think everybody involved would say they want to see the children have no more disruption in their life until their father has been put to rest."
With Michael Jackson's death, what will become of his three children?
Debbie Rowe, the mother of Prince Michael, 12, and Paris, 11, is their legal parent and can gain custody of them if she chooses, according to Rowe's former attorney, Iris Finsilver.
Prince Michael, Paris and Jackson's third child, Blanket, 7, whose mother has not been identified, have been in the care of Jackson's mother Katherine since the entertainer died Thursday after a cardiac arrest. "The kids are very upset, but they are fine," Jackson's manager, Frank DiLeo, tells PEOPLE.
During the custody fight between Rowe and Jackson in 2005, Rowe sought to give up her parental rights, and lauded Michael as a good father. Retired Judge Stephen Lachs, who presided over the hearing, at first agreed to terminate them, but then Lachs changed his mind and returned the rights to her.
"She lost them, and then she got them back," Finsilver says. Finsilver said she spoke to Rowe on Thursday but she cannot say what Rowe plans to do. "She was inconsolable."
Jackson family attorney Brian Oxman says Jackson's mother, the family matriarch, would be a natural guardian for the kids, though it won't be her decision.
"Katherine is the logical choice – she has all the grandkids and nieces around her but it will be up to the courts," Oxman tells PEOPLE. "I wouldn't be surprised if there are more proceedings regarding the children."
A fierce custody battle is brewing over two of Michael Jackson's children, with their mother relaying word Thursday that she plans to fight for them in court, and the Jackson family signaling they will fight right back.
