When I'm 64 - The McCartney Divorce

The recent announcement of the separation of Sir Paul (aged 63) and Lady McCartney (aged 38) highlights the situation of couples who separate and divorce after a short marriage. Sir Paul and Lady McCartney met in 1999 and married in 2002. His fortune is estimated at £825 million. Some suggestions are that Lady McCartney will leave the marriage with some £200 million. Whilst this is a sum that is beyond the wildest dreams of most people it is approximately one quarter of Sir Paul’s total wealth.

James Haworth, Head of Family comments:

“She is unlikely to receive half of Sir Paul’s assets, as many people may have expected. One of the main reasons for this is that theirs was a short marriage. The length of the marriage is just one of a number of factors that are taken into account by the courts in deciding these matters. If a divorcing couple cannot agree how to divide their assets, a Judge must decide, and he or she has a very broad discretion to take into account a number of factors. The length of the marriage, either short, medium or long is simply one of those factors. Where the marriage is a short one the court will try, so far as possible to leave the parties in the same financial position as they were when they got married. Therefore each party could take away from the marriage what they brought to it.”

“On the other hand Lady McCartney could argue that she has contributed considerably to the earnings of the couple during the marriage, has the cost of rearing their 2 year old daughter Beatrice, should Beatrice remain with her, and she has become accustomed to a certain standard of living. These factors, especially the needs of a dependent child will make it less likely that a spouse may take out only what they put in.”

He added further:
“None of this can be predicted with any degree of certainty, particularly as the House of Lords, the highest appeal court in the Country is currently deliberating the outcomes of 2 divorces of wealthy couples in which the wives are seeking significant proportions of their husband’s assets. Much will depend on the outcomes of the cases as to how Sir Paul and his wife will be advised by their respective lawyers.

However, Sir Paul and Lady McCartney’s case is an exceptional one. Not many of us have anywhere near the amount of assets that they do. However the general principle can apply to all.

Sir Paul could not have known, all those yesterdays ago that when he was 64 he would be involved in a high profile and potentially expensive divorce case.”