When a Mississippi couple goes through a divorce, the two parties must divide their marital property. This includes anything bought, accumulated, collected or earned over the course of a marriage. While most couples or individual spouses do not have billions of dollars, the divorces of the extremely wealthy can serve valuable lessons for average income earners. MacKenzie Scott, former wife of the founder of Amazon, recently filed for divorce from her second husband.
Smart money decisions
Ms. Scott is worth a significant amount of money. She received $37 billion in her divorce to Jeff Bezos, promising to give half of this total to charity. In her second marriage, it is believed that the two parties signed a prenuptial agreement, a prudent step since Ms. Scott is one of the wealthiest women in the world, and her fiancé was a science teacher at the time they married.
While the divorce is still ongoing, it appears that the couple filed a formal separation agreement. In the agreement, the financial terms of their separation and divorce are already settled. Because they had a prenuptial agreement in place, there is no need for the two parties to spend time and money on a protracted court battle.
What does this mean for Mississippi couples?
Mississippi spouses can take steps to protect their personal wealth before and after their marriages. Even if billions or millions of dollars are not at stake, each spouse has the right to seek separation or divorce terms that will allow him or her to have stability and security long-term. To do this, it will be beneficial to work with an experienced family law attorney at every step.
