In the past, the public has watched celebrity divorces or divorces of the extremely wealthy drag on and on. In somewhat of a refreshing change, the extremely wealthy Rupert Murdoch and his estranged wife Wendi have come to a divorce settlement relatively quickly and without drama.
Murdoch and his wife have been married for 14 years and have two children together. Given that the Murdochs’ family wealth is valued at more than $13 billion, it is clear that there is more than a past, kids (and almost 40 years) between the divorcing parties.
Financial matters are a staple of just about every divorce case. Matters can get more complicated when the assets to be divided during property division are valued in the billion-dollar range. In the out-of-state Murdoch case, the family has been able to keep specifics of their recently agreed upon settlement private.
Sources do report that there were extensive marital contracts between the parties, contracts that likely supported the amicable and somewhat quick nature of the high-asset divorce. ABC News reports that the couple had a prenuptial agreement but also at least one post nuptial agreement. Those legal documents, assuming both parties agreed to them voluntarily, might have saved the high-profile family from an ongoing, hostile and expensive divorce process.
Sure, financial motivation on both sides of this particular divorce might have made creating a prenup and other contracts beneficial. There is also the matter of children in this case, too. Having a plan in place should a marriage end in divorce can also be beneficial for the kids because they might be saved from seeing their parents fight through the legal process.
This is true for cases in Arizona, too, where a divorce lawyer with experience in complex property division matters could help parties put the contracts they want in place and/or help ensure that property is properly handled during the divorce.
Source: ABC News, “Rupert Murdoch, Pie-Catching Wife Finalize Divorce,” Alan Farnham, Nov. 20, 2013