Tuesday, May 4th, 2021
Alimony “not required”
The Gates couple lived without a prenuptial agreement
Bill and Melinda Gates married 27 years ago. Despite the gigantic fortune of the Microsoft founder and his wife, the two do without contractual provisions. Now they are getting divorced – and according to media reports they are also financially amicably parting.
Microsoft founder Bill Gates and still-wife Melinda should not have a marriage contract, according to media reports. The couple, who announced their divorce on Twitter on Monday, are said to have signed a separation agreement instead. It’s loud in it the US magazine “People” the division of the property of the two is regulated.
In Melinda Gates’ divorce petition, which was received in King County, Washington state, the billionaire’s still-wife declares that the marriage is “irrevocably broken.” She asks the court to dissolve the marriage and accept the separation. A maintenance payment from the spouse is “not required”, the document goes on to say. In April 2022, the couple are due to appear in court for the divorce date.
In the statement about their divorce, Bill and Melinda Gates stated that they want to continue the work for their organization “Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation”. However, the couple no longer believe “that as a couple we can continue to grow together in this coming phase of our lives”. Bill and Melinda Gates were married in 1994 and have three children together: 21-year-old son Rory and their two daughters, 18-year-old Phoebe and 25-year-old Jennifer.
Daughter Jennifer needs time to digest
The business magazine “Forbes” ranks Gates in fourth place on the list of the richest people in the world, behind Amazon founder Jeff Bezos and entrepreneurs Bernard Arnault and Elon Musk. Gates’ fortune is currently estimated at the equivalent of more than 108 billion euros.
Many years ago it became known that he and his still-wife Melinda, with whom he has been married since 1994, only wanted to leave the children the equivalent of around 8.5 million euros each – i.e. a fraction of his fortune. In 2013 the entrepreneur explained this decision to “Bild am Sonntag”: “My wife and I believe that you are doing your children a disservice if you shower them with money that they have not earned themselves.”
Daughter Jennifer now commented on Instagram about her parents’ divorce. “In the meantime, many of you have heard the news that my parents are separating,” she begins her statement. “It was a challenging time for our whole family,” explains the 25-year-old. To this day she still has to learn “how I deal with my emotions, just like other family members”, and she is grateful for “having the space to do this”.
Jennifer Gates insists that she will not comment on her parents’ separation any further. “But you should know that your kind words and support mean the world to me.” She said thank you for respecting the desire for privacy “while we navigate through the next phases of our lives,” she finished with her message.
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