Gillian Hearst Files for Divorce from Husband After 10 Years of Marriage

Gillian Hearst, a socialite and contributor to Town & Country who is the daughter of Patty Hearst and great-granddaughter of William Randolph Hearst, recently filed for divorce from husband Christian Simonds after 10 years of marriage.

The couple has three daughters, who are aged four, three and one. In addition to child custody, asset distribution is expected to be a major complicating factor in the divorce. The pair owns a $10 million, 4,176 square-foot townhouse on West 83rd Street on the Upper West Side of Manhattan.

The Hearst family has been back in the news in recent months, with CNN airing a documentary series about Patty Hearst and her abduction in 1974 from her apartment in Berkeley, California.

Factors that often affect divorces of wealthy couples

When rich, famous and powerful people get divorced, the ensuing legal battles can become quite complex, as both sides are likely to have their own high-powered attorneys who are unwilling to back down. Asset distribution can be especially complicated in cases involving massive estates, as there is significantly more property and value to divide between the two. In short, there’s a lot at stake.

In addition, extremely wealthy people often enter marriages with a variety of contracts and prenuptial agreements, which must be sorted through to complete the asset distribution process. While these agreements can make some disputes more easily resolved, they can also become a point of contention during divorce proceedings.

To learn more about the factors that could affect your own divorce case and how you can best address them, meet with a skilled divorce lawyer at Bryan L. Salamone & Associates.