$176 M to Wife in Divorce Case a Record?
Marriage is traditionally considered an equal partnership – until it’s time to divide the couple’s assets in a divorce. At that point, husbands who have made it big in business routinely walk away with the lion’s share.
A groundbreaking divorce case in Chicago, though, may set a new record by awarding Maya Polsky, 55, half of the marital estate she shared with her husband, Michael, 57, to whom she has been married for 31 years. Arriving as Russian immigrants in this country in 1976 with $500 to their names, the couple made a fortune after he moved to Chicago four years later and earned master’s degree in business administration and founded several energy companies. Her share amounts to some $176 million, reports the Chicago Tribune.
Michael Polsky has filed a post-trial motion asking Cook County Circuit Judge William Boyd to reduce the asset award he made to Maya Polsky last fall, the Tribune reports. Meanwhile, Maya Polsky has asked the judge to increase it, because her husband’s future earning power is greater. Illinois divorce law provides that the judge should make an equitable distribution of marital assets, but does not require a 50-50 split. A ruling is expected later today.
