Rupert Murdoch managed to shock the world once more when he announced he was divorcing third wife, Wendi Deng. Putting to one side the undisclosed reason behind the divorce, which is described by those in the know as “jaw dropping”, there is always the question of financial settlement.
Ms Deng allegedly signed a prenuptial agreement before their wedding which took place on a New York yatcht. However when Mr Murdoch divorced from his second wife, who was entitled to 50% of the family stock, she agreed to waive her rights if the money was put in trust controlled by her three children, and Mr Murdoch’s daughter from his first marriage. This trust was later extended to include Ms Deng’s two children, but they were not given voting stocks.
Chaninat and Leeds specializes in prenuptial law in Thailand
New York has recognized foreign prenuptial agreements as enforceable as demonstrated by Stein-Sapir v. Stein-Sapir, 52 A.D.2d 115, 382 N.Y.S.2d 799 (1st Dep’t 1976) and Van Kipnis v. Van Kipnis, 11 N.Y.3d 573, 872 N.Y.S.2d 426, 900 N.E.2d 977 (2008). However New York also recently ruled a prenuptial agreement was invalid on the grounds of misrepresentation/fraud as reported by the ABA Journal which must have caught her attention.
Thailand law is similar in that the Thailand Conflict of Law Act recognizes foreign prenuptial agreement under certain situations and the Thailand Civil and Commerical Code may allow for invalidation of a contract procured by fraud.
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International Prenuptial Agreements: Conflicts of Law in the United States
European Prenuptial Agreements and the Hague Convention
Prenuptial Agreements in Japan – the Devil’s in the Details
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