Billionaire, Ex-Wife Reach Divorce Settlement

A billionaire Chicago hedge fund manager reached a divorce settlement with is now-ex-wife, just a day before a trial over the couple’s prenuptial agreement was scheduled to start. Attorneys for Ken Griffin, founder and chief executive officer of the investment firm Citadel, and his ex-wife, Anne Dias Griffin, announced that the couple had agreed to a divorce settlement. The couple’s lawyers also stated that the trial regarding the prenuptial agreement they signed in 2003 would not go on as scheduled.

Details of the Divorce Settlement

Many of the terms of the couple’s divorce settlement were not disclosed to the press. However, some aspects of the divorce settlement did come to light. Ms. Dias Griffin had been asking for sole custody of the couple’s three children, while Mr. Griffin wanted joint custody. The settlement allowed Mr. Griffin to maintain joint custody. As a result, Ms. Dias Griffin retracted her request to move the children to New York. Instead, both parents and the children will stay in Chicago.

Divorce Settlement Could Prove Costly

While the financial terms of the divorce settlement were not disclosed, the results could prove extremely costly for Mr. Griffin. He reportedly receives an annual salary from Citadal of $1.3 billion. According to a report from CNBC, he had a net worth of over $6 billion, placing him in the top 10 among investor billionaires. Unlike most states, Illinois does not use the “community property” principle when dividing marital assets. Instead, judges use several factors to determine the “equitable distribution of marital property” in a divorce settlement.

Divorce Settlement and Prenuptial Agreement

The core of the argument prior to the divorce settlement announcement involved the couple’s prenuptial agreement. Many prominent divorce attorneys who observed the case agreed that Ms. Dias Griffin chose the better option in taking the divorce settlement over going to trial. One attorney told the Chicago Tribune that she was “on the weak end of the case.” Another said that she would have endured “a hard road to go” to convince a judge to disregard the prenuptial agreement.

Divorce Settlement Avoids Trials

The divorce settlement allowed the couples to avoid several costly and lengthy trials. The trial on the validity of the prenuptial agreement had been scheduled for the day after the couple’s lawyers announced the divorce settlement. A child support trial was scheduled to follow in November and December, followed by a child custody and visitation proceeding after the start of the new year.

Source: Chicago Tribune

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NOTE: This post is a news story and does not imply an endorsement of Arguello Law Firm by any concerned parties mentioned herein.