McCartney and Mills return to divorce court
The fight over the wealth of the former Beatle, who is estimated to have as much as £820 million (€1.1bn), could produce Britain’s largest-ever divorce settlement.
Mills, aged 40, looked tense and said nothing as she entered a courtroom at London’s Royal Courts of Justice wearing a gray suit and bright pink shirt.
McCartney, aged 65, arrived at court after his estranged wife, also wearing a gray suit. He said “good morning” as he entered court carrying a large black case.
Unlike most British court hearings, divorce proceedings are heard in private, and the door of court 34 bore a sign reading “No Admittance — Strictly Private”.
The hearing before Justice Hugh Bennett is scheduled to last five days. The terms of any settlement would not become public record unless it moved to the Court of Appeal, or either of the parties chooses to reveal details.
That has not stopped a frenzy of media interest and speculation. Dozens of photographers staked out entrances to the court, while two news helicopters hovered overhead.
“Current estimates suggest that Heather is likely to receive anything from £50m to £100m (€134m) as her final settlement,” said Suzanne Kingston, a family law expert.
“The fact that this has been a short marriage will be taken into account and this could involve looking at the wealth that has been generated during the course of the marriage as distinct from premarital wealth,” Kingston added.
Mills intends to represent herself. She fired her lawyers in November after a series of interviews in which she accused
McCartney of failing to protect her and their four-year-old daughter Beatrice from abuse, which she says ranges from lies and slander to death threats.
“I’ve had worse press than a paedophile or a murderer, and I’ve done nothing but charity for 20 years,” she said in one of her November interviews.
The couple married in June 2002, and their daughter was born in October 2003. They announced their separation in 2006, and McCartney filed for divorce alleging “unreasonable behaviour” by his wife.