Seven years ago, Frank and Jamie McCourt moved from Massachusetts to California to buy the Los Angeles Dodgers. At the time, of course, they did not know that a divorce was in their future.

But it was.

For months now, the couple has been struggling to hammer out the terms of their divorce settlement. On Oct. 17, they finally announced they had reached a settlement in their high net-worth divorce case.

Under the agreement, Jamie McCourt will now support a media rights deal for the Dodgers which some estimate could be worth up to $3 billion. At one time, she opposed such a deal. The exact terms of the agreement have not been released, but it is estimated that she could get somewhere in the neighborhood of $130 million. A Los Angeles judge must still sign off on the divorce agreement in order for it to be binding and complete.

One reason this high net-worth divorce has taken so long is because it was placed on hold so a Delaware bankruptcy court could take up the financial fate of the Dodgers. Motions on that case began October 31. Major League Baseball wants permission from the bankruptcy judge to file a reorganization plan for the team that would require McCourt to sell the team.

This particular divorce illustrates how complex a divorce can become when there are high-net value assets to be considered. Couples who have real estate holdings, stock options, and other valuable marital property often are best served when working with an experienced attorney who understands these issues as they pertain to high net-worth divorces. A skilled Massachusetts attorney may be able to layout a workable strategy that is fair to all parties.

Source: Yahoo! Sports, “McCourts reach settlement in divorce battle,” Greg Risling, Oct. 18, 2011