Mary Anne Den Bok is a lawyer best known for her former relationship with legendary musician Ray Charles. She is also the mother of his youngest child, Ryan Corey Robinson den Bok, commonly called Corey. Although her connection to Charles brought public attention, much of her own life remains outside the public record.
Her name appeared in news reports after Charles’s death, first through a child support case and later through disagreements over his legacy. These events offer a glimpse into her public role, but they do not tell her entire story. Behind the headlines is a woman whose known biography centers on law, motherhood, and her connection to the Charles family.
Quick Bio: Mary Anne Den Bok
| Field | Details |
|---|---|
| Full Name | Mary Anne den Bok |
| Profession | Lawyer / Attorney |
| Known For | Her former relationship with Ray Charles |
| Former Partner | Ray Charles |
| Marriage to Ray Charles | No confirmed marriage |
| Son | Ryan Corey Robinson den Bok |
| Son’s Common Name | Corey |
| Son’s Birth Year | 1987 |
| Son’s Family Position | Ray Charles’s youngest child |
| Date of Birth | Not publicly confirmed |
| Age | Not publicly confirmed |
| Birthplace | Not publicly confirmed |
| Education | Details not publicly confirmed |
| Legal Speciality | Not clearly established |
| Child Support Case | Sought increased support for Corey after Charles’s death |
| 2005 Court Outcome | Regular support remained unchanged; education and medical expenses also provided for |
| Legacy Involvement | Involved in disputes concerning the management of Charles’s legacy |
| Net Worth | Not reliably established |
Who Is Mary Anne Den Bok?
Mary Anne Den Bok is publicly identified as an attorney and the mother of Ray Charles’s youngest son. Unlike the musician, she has no widely documented public career filled with performances, interviews, or television appearances.
Most available reporting focuses on particular family events. Her legal background is mentioned, but little coverage details her professional achievements or working life. This makes it important to separate confirmed information from claims that appear online without clear support.
She is often introduced through Charles, yet her identity also includes her own profession and her role as a parent. Both deserve attention when discussing her life.
Her Relationship With Ray Charles
Mary Anne had a relationship with Ray Charles, and they had a son together. Their connection forms part of the musician’s wider family history, which included twelve children.
Reliable public accounts do not provide a complete timeline of their relationship. Details about their first meeting, the early years of their connection, and their private arrangements are not clearly established. There is also no dependable basis for describing Mary Anne as his wife.
The clearest fact is their shared parenthood. Their son connected Mary Anne to Charles’s family during the singer’s lifetime and to the family matters that followed his death.
Mother of Ryan Corey Robinson den Bok
Ryan Corey Robinson den Bok was born in 1987. Often known simply as Corey, he is recognized as Ray Charles’s youngest child.
His full name appears in different forms across public reports. Some use Corey Robinson den Bok, while others use the longer Ryan Corey Robinson den Bok. These references concern the same son of Mary Anne and Charles.
Corey was still a teenager when his father died. That detail gives the later support case important context. He was a young person facing the loss of a parent while questions about his financial support were being handled publicly.
The available reports do not explain every detail of Mary Anne’s parenting. They do show that she actively sought provision for her son.
What Is Known About Her Legal Career?
Established reporting describes Mary Anne Den Bok as a lawyer. Legal directory listings also connect her name with a law office.
However, her professional background is not documented in enough detail to present a full career timeline. The available material does not clearly establish her university, law school, complete employment history, or main area of practice.
It would therefore be inaccurate to call her a leading entertainment attorney or assign her a legal specialty without further evidence. Her connection to a musician does not, by itself, explain the kind of law she practiced.
What can be said is that her legal identity existed alongside her family connection. She was not simply a name mentioned in Charles’s personal history.
Why She Received Attention After Charles’s Death
Ray Charles died on 10 June 2004, at the age of seventy-three. His death brought renewed attention to his music, personal life, and family.
For Mary Anne, the following months included a public dispute over support for Corey. News coverage focused heavily on the amount she requested from the estate.
That focus made the case easy to reduce to a single number. However, the wider issue concerned the support of a teenage child after his father’s death. Questions about living expenses, education and health were part of the story.
A careful account needs to explain both the request and the court’s response. Reporting only the largest figure leaves readers with an incomplete picture.
The Child Support Request
Reports from late 2004 said Mary Anne sought an increase in the support paid for Corey. At the time, the reported regular payment was $3,000 per month.
Her initial request was for at least $60,000 per month. She argued that the existing amount did not meet her son’s expenses or reflect the lifestyle he had known before his father’s final illness.
Mary Anne later changed her request. Reporting also described her expressing regret over the size of the original amount.
This distinction matters. The first sum requested was not the amount awarded. A court petition sets out what a person wants the judge to consider; the final decision may differ.
What Happened in the 2005 Court Ruling?
In February 2005, reports stated that the judge declined to increase Corey’s regular monthly support above the existing amount.
However, the ruling also included provision for his education and medical expenses, according to the estate’s lawyer. The outcome therefore involved more than a simple rejection of every request.
Corey, then seventeen, spoke outside court about wanting to return to the living conditions he remembered while his father was alive. His comments added a personal perspective to proceedings otherwise dominated by financial figures.
The reported outcome was that the regular payment remained unchanged, while school and health costs were considered separately. There is no basis for saying Mary Anne received the original monthly sum she requested.
Her Involvement in Ray Charles’s Legacy Dispute
Mary Anne’s name later appeared in reporting about disagreements between members of Charles’s family and those managing his affairs.
By 2008, the public discussion had expanded beyond child support. It included concerns about how his recordings were handled, the use of his name and image, and the family’s involvement in decisions about his legacy.
Mary Anne was connected to legal action involving longtime manager Joe Adams. The reporting described allegations about management decisions and financial matters.
These claims were disputed. They should be understood as allegations made during a legal dispute, not as established findings.
This chapter explains why Mary Anne appears in discussions about Charles’s legacy as well as accounts of his personal life.
A Private Life With Limited Public Details
Many basic details about Mary Anne remain unclear in reliable public sources. The reporting reviewed does not firmly establish her exact birth date, childhood, parents, or educational history.
Her personal wealth is also unverified. Figures connected to Charles’s estate cannot be used to calculate her net worth. Likewise, asking for support does not prove that she received the amount requested.
Dependable information about her current circumstances is limited. Older court reports should not be used to claim that she is currently involved in the same disputes.
These gaps do not need dramatic explanations. They simply mark the limits of what is publicly known.
Conclusion
Mary Anne Den Bok holds a documented place in Ray Charles’s family history as his former partner and the mother of his youngest son, Corey. Her public story also includes her legal profession, a child support case, and involvement in disputes about the musician’s legacy.
The clearest account of her life stays close to those facts. It acknowledges her role without inventing private details or letting court headlines define her entire identity.
(FAQs)
Who is Mary Anne Den Bok?
Mary Anne Den Bok is a lawyer known for her former relationship with Ray Charles. She is the mother of his youngest son, Ryan Corey Robinson Den Bok.
Was Mary Anne Den Bok married to Ray Charles?
Available reporting identifies her as a former partner. It does not establish that they were married.
Who is Mary Anne Den Bok’s son?
Her son is Ryan Corey Robinson Den Bok, commonly called Corey. He was born in 1987 and is Charles’s youngest child.
Did she receive $60,000 a month in child support?
No. That was her initial reported request. The 2005 ruling kept regular monthly support at its existing level and also provided for education and medical expenses.
What is Mary Anne Den Bok’s net worth?
Her personal net worth is not reliably established. Charles’s estate figures and her support requests do not show how much she owns.
