PLUNGING OIL prices may be bad news for those in the business, but for Harold Hamm, it’s a double whammy. The American oil tycoon has just hit the headlines for creating a world-record $1 billion in a divorce settlement. Hamm is best known for pioneering the development of large shale oil resources and, in 2012, he was ranked as the 30th richest person in America and 76th richest person in the world, with a net worth estimated at $11 billion. His 1988 marriage to Sue Ann Arnall ended last week when an Oklahoma County judge ruled that Hamm should pay his second wife $995.5 million as alimony. That record, however, is valid for America, but here’s a list of the most expensive break-ups:
Dmitry Yevgenyevich Rybolovlev: The Russia-born investor/businessman based in Monaco, where he owns the local French First Division club, Monaco FC, was ranked number 147 among Forbes billionaires, with a net worth of $8.8 billion. On May 19, that fortune was halved when a Swiss court ordered him to pay over $4.5 billion to his former wife Elena, making it the most expensive divorce settlement in history.
Alec Wildenstein: The billionaire French businessman, art dealer, racehorse owner and horse breeder first hit the headlines in 2001 when his father died, leaving him a business empire estimated at $10 billion, including what was believed to be the world’s largest private collection of major works of art. He married Jocelyne Perisset in 1978 and their divorce proceedings between 1997 and 1999 gained wide media coverage for revelations about the couple’s extravagant spending habits and Perisset’s fondness for plastic surgery. The judge awarded her a divorce settlement of $2.5 billion.
‘Bernie’ Ecclestone: He is a British businessman better known as the boss of Formula One racing. He is ranked as the fourth richest person in the UK, with an estimated fortune of $4.2 billion. He made news in India when he sold one of his London residences in Kensington Palace Gardens to Lakshmi Mittal for £57.1 million, the most expensive house ever sold at the time. He has been married thrice, but his marriage to Slavica, a former Armani model from Croatia, his second wife and 28 years younger to him, cost him big time—estimated at $1.5 billion in the divorce settlement.
Adnan Khashoggi: The controversial Saudi Arabian businessman and arms dealer, once estimated to be worth $40 billion, is considered one of the richest men in the world. He figured as a middleman in the Iran-Contra affair and the money laundering case involving Pune stud farm owner, Hasan Ali Khan. He was married to Englishwoman Sandra Daly, who converted to Islam and took the name Soraya Khashoggi. Her divorce settlement was estimated at $850 million.
Mel Gibson: The actor, filmmaker and screenwriter is best known for the Lethal Weapon series and Braveheart. He was divorced by Robyn Moore Gibson and paid out an estimated $425 million in the settlement, the highest in Hollywood history.
Roman Abramovich: The Russian businessman, investor and politician, better known as the owner of the Chelsea Football Club in the English Premier League, has an estimated fortune of $14.6 billion and is currently the fifth richest person in Russia and the 50th richest person in the world. In 1991, he married a former Aeroflot stewardess, Irina Vyacheslavovna Malandina. They divorced in 2007 with a settlement reported as being $300 million.
Michael Jordan: Widely regarded as the greatest basketball player of all time, the American former professional basketball player-turned-entrepreneur married Juanita Vanoy in 1989. They filed for mutual divorce and were granted a final decree of dissolution of marriage in 2006. It was reported that Vanoy received a $168-million settlement, making it the largest celebrity divorce settlement in history at the time on public record.
