Christine McCain has won a record divorce settlement of
$175,000 per month plus $2 million retroactive from ex-husband Michael McCain.
Madam Justice Susan Greer ruled in Ontario Superior Court
that a nuptial agreement forced on his five children by the late Wallace McCain
could not stand.
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| Easy come, easy go |
McCain’s lawyers say they will try to appeal the decision.
This court decision does not deal with the division of about
$500 million worth of assets. It only deals with spousal support.
The judge listed the reasons for such a high monthly
settlement:
“There were memberships in three private clubs, private
schools for all five of their children, extravagant entertaining both
personally and through business – with the very finest foods and wines
available.”
There was also an $8-million yacht with a paid crew of three
and another $18-million yacht under construction.
The two were married in 1981 and separated in 2011.
Greer decided to over-rule the nuptial agreement, writing
“how could the wife possibly take on the burden of not signing the contract for
her own personal gain, knowing that her husband’s father would cast her husband
out of receiving his inheritance?”
The settlement includes mortgage payments on two cottages
and a home held in Christine’s name.
Even after the separation, court records indicate Christine
was spending $2,600 per month on pilates/yoga instruction, $5,562 per month on
personal entertainment expenses, $16,395 per month on travel and $12,812 on
household expenses such as food, dry cleanin and pet care,
Her lawyer, Harold Niman, said “I really hope that when
people read this, they won’t walk away thinking she is an indulgent,
extravagant woman. This is the lifestyle they led. The rich are different.”
I wonder what the Maple Leaf Foods employees at the packing
plants that were closed and sold, and the hog farmers who were squeezed out of
business, think of all this.
