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| Wendi Murdoch hires new lawyer, |
| Wendi Murdoch hires new lawyer, suggesting divorce is getting messy
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| UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
, 30-July-2013
5:44:26 AM |
| Just over a month after Rupert Murdoch surprised his wife of 14 years with divorce papers, Wendi Murdoch has switched lawyers, a move signaling that the separation could take an acrimonious turn.
Wendi Murdoch has hired William D. Zabel, a well-known New York trusts and estates lawyer who has represented several women in their divorces from wealthy businessmen, including Jane Beasley Welch during her contentious split from Jack Welch, former chief executive of General Electric.
A spokesman for Wendi Murdoch, Christopher Giglio, confirmed the hiring of Zabel, but otherwise declined to comment.
Murdoch had been represented by Pamela M. Sloan, who advised Murdoch on her prenuptial agreement with Rupert Murdoch in 1999, when the couple married in front of 82 guests on board his 155-foot yacht, the Morning Glory.
But since then, Sloan had become friendly with the Murdochs, and Wendi Murdoch decided she wanted more independent counsel, said a person with direct knowledge of the case who like many people declined to be identified discussing personal matters.
Sloan did not return a request for comment.
Although the Murdochs signed a prenuptial agreement and two postnuptial agreements delineating the separation of assets in the event of a divorce, there are a number of areas that remain up for negotiation, said people with knowledge of the case who spoke only on the condition of anonymity.
For one, there are the custody arrangements and child support for their daughters, Grace, 11, and Chloe, 9, these people said. Because they are not binding on the court, custody arrangements and child support are rarely part of prenuptial agreements, and are often used by the less-moneyed spouse as leverage in negotiations.
Other issues that could be contended include the division of certain assets, like their Fifth Avenue penthouse and the yacht, on which Wendi Murdoch, 44, and her daughters are vacationing in the Caribbean.
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