Linda Bean’s estate wants records sealed

The estate of the late Linda Bean is asking a probate judge to seal its records.

That request was filed last Wednesday in Knox County Probate Court, according to the Courier Gazette .

No reason was given for the request.

Register of Probate Elaine Hallett told the Gazette that she’s never seen a will sealed in her 45 years working in the Knox County office.

No hearings have been scheduled or a timetable set for a decision to be issued, the Gazette reported.

Portland-based law firm Verrill Dana LLP filed the request on behalf of the estate’s representative, Veronika Carlson, president of Linda Bean’s Perfect Maine. The Gazette reported that Bean’s will, dated Aug. 21, 2022, will be filed in probate court after a judge issues a decision on the request.

Bean died March 23 at age 82 . She founded the companies Linda Bean’s Perfect Maine and Linda Bean’s Maine Lobster, among other business ventures on the state’s midcoast. She was the granddaughter of L.L. Bean founder Leon Leonwood Bean.

Beyond business, Bean supported several philanthropic organizations and even made bids for political office, unsuccessfully vying for the Republican nomination for the 1st Congressional District in 1988 and then losing a general election bid for that same seat in 1992.