TIMES.KY

Cayman Islands, Caribbeanand International News
Monday, Mar 20, 2023

MacKenzie Scott likely had a prenup with her second husband, legal experts say. Here's what could happen next with her divorce — and how it could affect the billions designated for charity.

MacKenzie Scott likely had a prenup with her second husband, legal experts say. Here's what could happen next with her divorce — and how it could affect the billions designated for charity.

MacKenzie Scott's divorce is unlikely to impact her multibillion-dollar charitable giving, experts say.

Scott filed for divorce from her second husband, Dan Jewett, on Monday. The couple has been married for less than two years and had embarked on a philanthropic mission together, but recently, mentions of Jewett had disappeared from Scott's posts and online profiles. On Wednesday, The New York Times broke the news that they're splitting up.

Scott was previously married to Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, and their divorce left her with a 3% stake in the e-commerce giant, a stake that has made her the world's 40th-richest person.

But legal experts told Insider that Scott's second divorce will likely be vastly different from the first time around and will almost certainly leave the majority of her $28 billion fortune untouched.


'Shocked' if there is no prenuptial agreement


When Scott's divorce from Bezos was finalized in 2019, she walked away with millions of Amazon shares worth, at that time, roughly $38 billion. Though she's been working to offload her immense wealth since then, she still entered the marriage to Jewett with assets that far outpaced most people on the planet, including her second husband.

To that end, it's almost certain that the couple signed a prenuptial agreement, according to Eleanor Alter, a partner at New York law firm Alter, Wolff, & Foley who has handled high-profile divorce cases.

"It's possible they didn't have a prenuptial agreement, but I'd be shocked," she said.

Jennifer Brandt, chair of the family law group at Pennsylvania law firm Cozen O'Connor, agreed: "In most cases when you have high net worth people, they do want to get, and are advised to get, a prenuptial agreement."

Brandt noted that prenups are especially common in cases where someone has been married before or comes into the marriage with significant wealth, which are both factors that apply to Scott.


Couple already agreed to a contract that divides their assets


Though Scott's divorce petition doesn't mention a prenup, it does say that the couple signed a separation agreement, an interim agreement that sets some rules for the period of separation before a couple is divorced. Beyond divvying up a couple's finances, it can include issues like child or spousal support, though neither request was included in the divorce petition.

"It could even dictate use of certain assets or use of properties," Brandt said. "If you have multiple properties, it may dictate where people live or what properties they may be using during an intervening period before the assets are distributed and maybe who pays for them."

Oftentimes, those types of agreements are included in a prenup, according to Alter.

"A lot of prenuptial agreements provide that if you get divorced, this is the separation agreement. So there's no difference, there's nothing to negotiate," she said. "The terms of the prenuptial agreement become the terms of the separation agreement. In a short marriage, that's likely."

While Scott's petition is publicly accessible, the separation agreement is sealed. Terry Price, a family law professor at the University of Washington, told GeekWire that details of that contract "will never see the light of day." Scott and Jewett have not commented publicly on their divorce plans.


The divorce will likely be finalized quickly


Washington, where they live, is a community-property state, meaning that the assets a couple acquires while they're married belong to both of them and therefore will be divided equitably. But if one person comes to the marriage with property of their own, they're not required to split that with their spouse in the event of a divorce, according to state law.

Which means that Scott's wealth — and her plans to donate at least half of it during her lifetime, which she's doing faster than any other living person, according to Puck — likely won't be significantly impacted by the divorce.

Alter pointed out that divorce may affect Scott's tax situation, as married people can give more money away without paying taxes, but given the scale of Scott's donations and the machinery that's likely behind it, it's unclear how her taxes will be affected, if at all.

Either way, the experts agree that Scott and Jewett will likely push for the divorce to become finalized as quickly and quietly as possible. Washington law says that the petition must be filed and served to the other spouse for at least 90 days before a judge will dissolve a marriage. Alter estimated that, given the likelihood of a prenup and the brevity of the marriage, Scott's divorce will take "a few months, at most" to complete.

Newsletter

Related Articles

TIMES.KY
Close
0:00
0:00
Home Secretary Suella Braverman tours potential migrant housing in Rwanda as asylum deal remains mired in legal challenges
Paris Rioting vs Macron anti democratic law
'Sexual Fantasy' Assignment At US School Outrages Parents
Credit Suisse to borrow $54 billion from Swiss central bank
Russian Hackers Preparing New Cyber Assault Against Ukraine
Jeremy Hunt insists his Budget will get young parents and over-50s back into work
If this was in Tehran, Moscow or Hong Kong
TRUMP: "Standing before you today, I am the only candidate who can make this promise: I will prevent World War III."
Mexican President Claims Mexico is Safer than the U.S.
A brief banking situation report
Lady bites police officer and gets instantly reaction
We are witnessing widespread bank fails and the president just gave a 5 min speech then walked off camera.
Donald Trump's asked by Tucker Carlson question on if the U.S. should support regime change in Russia?.
Silicon Valley Bank exec was Lehman Brothers CFO
In a potential last-ditch effort, HSBC is considering a rescue deal to save Silicon Valley Bank UK from insolvency
BBC Director General, Tim Davie, has apologized, but not resigned, yet, following the disruption of sports programmes over the weekend
Elon Musk Is Planning To Build A Town In Texas For His Employees
The Silicon Valley Bank’s collapse effect is spreading around the world, affecting startup companies across the globe
City officials in Berlin announced on Thursday that all swimmers at public pools will soon be allowed to swim topless
Fitness scam
Market Chaos as USDC Loses Peg to USD after $3.3 Billion Reserves Held by Silicon Valley Bank Closed.
Senator Tom Cotton: If the Mexican Government Won’t Stop Cartels from Killing Americans, Then U.S. Government Should
Banking regulators close SVB, the largest bank failure since the financial crisis
The unelected UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, an immigrant himself, defends new controversial crackdown on illegal migration
Man’s penis amputated by mistake after he’s wrongly diagnosed with a tumour
In a major snub to Downing Street's Silicon Valley dreams, UK chip giant Arm has dealt a serious blow to the government's economic strategy by opting for a US listing
It's the question on everyone's lips: could a four-day workweek be the future of employment?
Is Gold the Ultimate Safe Haven Asset in Times of Uncertainty?
Spain officials quit over trains that were too wide for tunnels...
Don Lemon, a CNN anchor, has provided a list of five areas that he believes the black community needs to address.
Hello. Here is our news digest from London.
Corruption and Influence Buying Uncovered in International Mainstream Media: Investigation Reveals Growing Disinformation Mercenaries
Givenchy Store in New York Robbed of $50,000 in Merchandise
European MP Clare Daly condemns US attack on Nord Stream
Former U.S. President Carter will spend his remaining time at home and receive hospice care instead of medication
Tucker Carlson called Trump a 'demonic force'
US Joins 15 NATO Nations in Largest Space Data Collection Initiative in History
White House: No ETs over the United States
U.S. Jet Shoots Down Flying Object Over Canada
Being a Tiktoker might be expensive…
SpaceX, the private space exploration company, made a significant breakthrough in their mission to reach space.
China's top tech firms, including Alibaba, Tencent, Baidu, NetEase, and JD.com, are developing their own versions of Open AI's AI-powered chatbot, ChatGPT
This shocking picture, showing how terrible is the results of the earthquake in Turkey
President Joe Biden delivered the 2023 State of the Union Address , in order to help Americans that missed the 2022 speech, do not have internet, and suffer from short memory.
The desk of King Carlos Alberto of Sardinia has many secret compartments
Today's news from Britain - 9th February 2023
The five largest oil companies in the West generated combined profits of nearly $200 billion in 2022, which has led to increased calls for governments to impose tougher windfall taxes
2 earthquakes in Turkey killed over 2,300 people
Powerful Earthquake Strikes Turkey and Syria, Killing More Than 1,300 People.
Turkish photographer Ugur Gallenkus portrays two different worlds within a single image. Brilliant work
×