Prosecutors and lawyers for Alex Murdaugh returned to court on Friday amid escalating disputes over evidence for his retrial next year on murder charges.

Murdaugh, a once-rich and imposing heir to a Southern legal dynasty, is scheduled to stand trial again in April on two murder charges in the June 2021 shooting deaths of his wife, Maggie, and younger son, Paul, at their home in Colleton County.

Murdaugh, 58, was in court Friday in a suit as he serves a lengthy prison sentence after pleading guilty to stealing from clients.