Billionaire Henry Silverman has reportedly argued that his wife should receive a reduced divorce settlement because it was his 'innate genius' alone that lead to the accumulation of his alleged $450 million fortune.
Under divorce law in England the starting point is a 50/50 division of a couple's finances. The divorce solicitors may then try to find reasons why one party should receive a greater share. One reason is known as a 'stellar contribution' which no doubt Mr Silverman considers he made.
The family law courts are however very reluctant to treat such exceptional financial contributions as a reason to depart from an equal split of martial assets even where the wealth it generated is extraordinary. This is because our divorce law views the contributions of the breadwinner and homemaker as equal.
Unless, therefore, the genius that generated the wealth is such as to induce a 'gulp' rather than a 'gasp' it will not effect the terms of the divorce settlement.
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