Video Transcript
Speaker 1:
What happens when the richest man on the planet gets a divorce? How does a judge divide an estate worth well over a hundred billion dollars? Well, we’re about to find out as Amazon founder Jeff Bezos announced he and his wife are divorcing amicably after 25 years of marriage. Joining us now divorce and family law attorney Brad Micklin.
So Brad, where do you begin?
Brad Micklin:
Well, I think you’d begin by determining who they’re gonna have representing them, and you can let Jeff and MacKenzie know that I’m certainly available if they need some help.
Carol Roth:
Brad, it’s Carol [Roth], what are the chances with Bezos being such a savvy businessman that they haven’t already ironed out all of the details? I mean, that’s a whole lot of money at stake, they’ve had five years to figure this out. Don’t you think that they’ve gone into this and pretty much have it figured out at this point?
Brad Micklin:
I would think so, Carol. I think they probably spent a great deal of time before making the announcement, because they wanted to make sure to minimize the impact it was going to have on the company and their other homes.
Steve Forbes:
Brad, Steve Forbes here. A story on our 400 richest list had a guy one time who called up screeching at us. He didn’t debate how much he was worth, he was furious that his wife would now know how much he was worth. He was divorcing her. So maybe we can help Jeff out, or her out.
Brad Micklin:
I don’t think either of them are gonna need help when you’re talking about a hundred and sixty billion dollars.
Speaker 5:
Let me just say I don’t feel so bad for a guy that may be going to be worth 80 billion dollars. Instead, I think he’s got enough cake for the rest of his life and I think the happiest person today is Steve [Wynn] because he had the most costly divorce before this.
Speaker 6:
I just assumed that with a hundred billion dollars, how is there a marriage problem that can’t be solved with that kind of cash. I would assume people like that have no problems. Steve’s always happy, he’s rich. Look, I just wonder, it’s gonna make it awkward for me deciding which of these two to stay friends with after this, but I’m sure I’ll figure it out.
Speaker 1:
Hey, Brad, how much of a cut, if you don’t mind me asking, is the lawyer of this gonna get? Percentage wise, whoever adjudicates this, is gonna be quite a wealthy person, no?
Brad Micklin:
Well, probably. Yeah, mostly it will limit the ability to take a percentage. It’s not like a personal injury case. It’s usually done on hourly or based on the net worth, but truthfully, for somebody that matches a hundred and sixty billion dollars, he might not spend a lot on it.
Speaker 1:
All right. But Brad is available if they want him. Thank you, Brad. We’ll see you next time.