World's 'most expensive divorce' set to halve oligarch's fortune

(CNN) -- Russian oligarch Dmitry Rybolovlev is set to lose half his wealth after being ordered to pay his former wife $4.5 billion in a settlement dubbed the "most expensive divorce in history."

Elena Rybolovleva's lawyer Marc Bonnant said the order from a Geneva court was unprecedented, and "this record judgment is a complete victory."

However, Rybolovlev's spokesman Sergey Chernitsyn said the divorce was still a "win" for the oligarch. The two had been battling over the settlement for six years, after Elena Rybolovleva, the oligarch's wife of 23 years, filed for divorce.

Rybolovlev's total wealth is estimated at $8.8 billion, according to the 2014 Forbes list of billionaires.

He made most of his money from the $6.5 billion sale of his stake in Russia's largest potassium fertilizer company in 2010. Rybolovlev is also known as the owner of the Monaco Football Club, which plays in the top French soccer league.

Rybolovlev made headlines when he bought the Palm Beach Maison de L'Amitie from Donald Trump for reported $95 million in 2008. In 2012, the Rybolovlev's then 21-year-old daughter Ekaterina bought Manhattan's most expensive apartment -- the penthouse on Central Park West which cost $88 million.

A trust set up in Ekaterina's name also reportedly own Scorpios, the Greek island where Jackie Kennedy married the former owner of the island, Aristotle Onassis, in 1968.

The oligarch's lawyers will appeal against the decision, questioning the sum. "There will definitely be a new appellate review and therefore this judgment is not final given the existence of two levels of appeal in Switzerland," said Tetiana Bersheda, Rybolovlev's lawyer.

KEY VOCABULARIES
1. dubbed-- something given
2.unprecedented--never before known or experienced
3. oligarch--a very rich businessman with a great deal of political influence
4.appellate--the process of changing earlier court decisions


DISCUSSION QUESTIONS

1. What did you think when you read the headline?
2. Do you think marriage should be forever?
3. Are you surprised by what you read/heard in the article?
4. What is your image of marriage in United States?
5. How easy do you think it should be to get a divorce?
6. What do you think of religions that do not allow divorce?
7. Do you think it’s fair that wives will be entitled to half of their husband’s pension?
8. Should men be entitled to half their wife’s pension?
9. What are the divorce laws like in your country?
10. Would you ever consider getting a divorce or would you stay married "til death do you part"?
11. How should a couple's belongings be divided after a divorce? Should it be 50-50, or should the wife get more?