Multiple news outlets, including the Minneapolis Star Tribune, are reporting on the ins and outs of media mogul Rupert Murdoch’s divorce from wife Wendi Deng. According to the Star Tribune, the divorce will not affect the succession plans of the Murdoch controlled News Corp. Murdoch and Deng have two children together. While neither has individual control over the media empire, they are beneficiaries of a family trust which does control the succession plan of the media company.
The matter is complicated by the fact that Murdoch has children from another marriage and previous divorce agreements concerning control of the company. Of course, Murdoch’s divorce has plenty of features that set it apart from a typical Minnesota Divorce. Most families aren’t bickering over the control of Fortune 500 companies or how to split up billions of dollars in wealth. The principles of property division, however, are constant.
Along with establishing child custody and a parenting plan, property division is generally one of the biggest issues to be resolved in a divorce. Despite the commonality of divorce in modern society, many divorcées do not know the first thing about dividing their assets. What property is considered marital property owned by both spouses? Is there any property that is separate from the marital estate? What does the couple do about retirement accounts?
These questions and more can be answered by experienced divorce attorneys. These local professionals can counsel divorces through asset disputes and make sure they secure a strong financial position. Moreover, if an ex-spouse subsequently gets another divorce or another occurance threatens the properly settlement, local attorneys can counsel clients through agreement modification or enforcement of the order.
Source: Minneapolis Star Tribune, “Rupert Murdoch files for divorce from Wendi Deng; succession plans remain unchanged,” Ryan Nakashima, June 13, 2013