People seeking advice from divorce lawyers in Stockport may be relieved that they are unlikely to have to pay as much as £70 million to their former spouse, like ASOS boss Nick Robertson has been ordered to do.
The 48-year-old multi-millionaire who set up the online fashion retailer is divorcing his wife Janine and faced a public hearing in the Family Division of the High Court.
While Mr Robertson, who is worth more than £200 million, argued that his ex should only be given £30 million, the judge ruled in favour of his former wife.
Justice Holman said the pair had the opportunity to resolve their dispute independently, but failed to agree on how to divide the value of shares and property.
He said: “I strongly urged the parties to settle the case, but no compromise has resulted.”
As a result, Justice Holman ruled for Mrs Robertson to be given £70 million.
The couple met in 2002, two years after ASOS was set up, and went on to have two children during their time together.
The online retailer now has almost ten million customers and more than 3,000 employees, making it one of the largest in the country. With more than 80,000 products on stock, ASOS is based all over the world, and has offices in Australia, China, the USA, Germany and England.
The judge ruled Mr Robertson had been the “money maker” during their relationship, having amassed a fortune of assets, including homes amounting to £60 million, and boats and cars worth £2 million.
However, he went on to say they had “contributed equally” to the marriage, as Mrs Robertson was an “excellent homemaker and an excellent mother”.