Many people may be aware that one of the richest people in Illinois, Kenneth Griffin, was going through a divorce. Like many divorces involving wealthy people, there was a lot of media attention to this divorce, which started over a year ago. There were some very public arguments and accusations from both parties in this matter regarding a pre-nuptial agreement signed by the parties.
Well, the parties reached an agreement to settle the divorce prior to the trial regarding the pre-nuptial agreement beginning. Many of the details of the agreement were kept sealed from the public, but the parties did agree to joint custody of their children. It is unknown what financial agreements were made for child support, alimony or asset division.
Most divorces in Illinois do not involve the same amount of money as the Griffin’s divorce, but many of the issues that they dealt with are dealt with in other divorces. Any divorce that involves children will deal with child custody issues just like the Griffin’s divorce. These decisions involve whether one spouse will have custody or whether they will share joint custody. The parties also have to make decisions regarding when each parent will have the children.
Divorces also involve many financial aspects as well. These include child support, alimony and asset division. Obviously this becomes much more complicated when one is a billionaire, but each divorce can present its own complications when it comes to financial determinations.
There are many divorces in Illinois each year. Most of these divorces do not involve billionaires and are not very public. However, whether the couple is in the media or not many of the same decisions must be made. These are very fact specific decisions though and each divorce is unique. Experienced attorneys understand the tough decisions that are made during a divorce and may be a helpful resource.
Source: New York Times, “Kenneth Griffin and Anne Dias Griffin Settle Divorce Case,” Alexandra Stevenson, Oct. 7, 2015