10 Extraordinary Divorce Settlements

There have been a number of high divorce settlements over the last couple of decades. Here are the details of 10 headline grabbing examples.

PAUL MCCARTNEY & HEATHER MILLS

One of the most high profile divorces in recent times was that of Paul McCartney and Heather Mills. Mills had demanded £125 million, but in the end was awarded a little less than a fifth of that at £24.3 million after their four year marriage. After the case was finished, the singers' former wife launched a lengthy rant outside the courtroom about the British judicial system.

PHIL COLLINS & ORIANNE CEVEY

In August 2007 another singer, Phil Collins has also been ordered to pay £24.3 million, to his ex-wife Orianne Cevey after 6 years of marriage. This isn't the first time the former Genesis singer and drummer has had to pay out a large divorce settlement. He has been married and divorced three times, and has had to pay a total of £40 million, almost a third of his total career earnings.

SPEPHEN SPIELBERG & AMY IRVING

Stephen Spielberg and his wife Amy Irving had a pre-nuptial agreement before their marriage in 1985. The marriage lasted only four years, but despite the agreement the film director was ordered to pay out a hefty sum. Spielberg, who has directed such film as Jaws and E.T., had to pay a little over £50 million.

MICHAEL & DIANDRA DOUGLAS

Michael and Diandra Douglas married in 1977, but twenty years later Diandra filed for divorce saying that she was fed up with his cheating ways. The divorce that followed took three years to complete, but in 2000 she received around £30 million from her ex-husband. He married Welsh actress Katherine Zeta Jones soon after.

MADONNA & GUY RICHIE

Recently the divorce of Madonna and film director husband Guy Richie has made the headlines. The divorce ended with a payout by the singer of approximately £45 million.

MICHAEL & JUANITA JORDAN

Neil Diamond did hold the record for the highest celebrity divorce settlement when he paid his ex-wife, Marcia Murphy, £75.5 million. This was beaten though by Michael Jordan, who paid his former wife, Juanita, £80 million. The former basketball legend's payout included their seven acre estate and custody of the couples' three children.

RUPERT & ANNA MURDOCH

Rupert Murdoch is one of the world richest people, who has made his fortune in the media industry, most notable as the owner of several newspaper groups. When he and his wife, Anna, first separated all seemed to be amicable. However, the Australian then made the mistake of forcing his wife off the board of the News Corp. This angered Anna Murdoch and things got messy, eventually leading to a payout of over £1 billion. 17 days after the divorce was finalised he married again, this time to one of his employees.

JOHN & BEVERLEY CHAPMAN

London stockbroker, John Chapman, divorced his wife in 2006 in a £48 million settlement. The insurance magnate, who owns global insurance company Axis, claimed that he should keep most of the money because he earned it, but the judge disagreed saying that Chapman's attitude was old fashioned and anachronistic.

MICHAEL & MAYA POLSKY

One of the largest divorce settlements in history was that of Michael and Maya Polsky. The couple got married in 1975 in the Ukraine before emigrating to the United States a year later. In 1980 Michael Polsky started working in energy, the industry that made him a vast fortune. After 27 years of marriage, they divorced in 2003, and Maya Polsky received £120 million. The sum was originally around $3 million less but as if that wasn't enough, the Judge increased it after learning of omitted assets. According to her lawyer, Maya was "very much satisfied with the courts decision". Not surprising really.

ADNAN & SORAYA KHASHOGGI

The amount Maya Polsky received seems a small amount when compared to the divorce settlement between Adnan and Soraya Khashoggi. Adnan Khashoggi is a Saudi international arms dealer, who also owned hotels, banks and real estate, and at one time was worth around £2.5 million. After his divorce he was ordered to pay around £500 million.

Andrew Marshall ©

Divorce Lawyer London