Dodgers Divorce Closer to Resolution: Part I
The Dodgers are one of the most storied franchises in Major League Baseball, and one of baseball’s most valuable teams. The team has been in some turmoil, mainly for off the field reasons. Most importantly, who will own the team for next season depends on the ruling in a divorce case.
Frank McCourt bought the team for approximately $355 million in 2004. This year, Forbes Magazine estimated the team’s value at $727 million including Dodger stadium and other team-owned facilities. Frank McCourt and his wife, Jamie, have been married since 1979 and were both active in owning and managing the team. However, in 2009 Frank McCourt fired Jamie McCourt as chief executive of the team. Shortly thereafter, Jamie filed for divorce from Frank.
Frank is claiming full ownership of the Dodgers based on a post-nuptial agreement they signed after purchasing the team, but before moving from Massachusetts to California. The post-nuptial agreement would give Frank complete ownership of the Dodgers, and Jamie would receive sole ownership of the McCourts’ vast real estate holdings.
Like Wisconsin, California is a community property state. In a community property system, the property of both spouses is considered to be marital property and each spouse has half-interest in all marital property. When a couple divorces, the marital property must be divided between them. Jamie McCourt is arguing that the post-nuptial agreement is invalid under community property law, and therefore she is entitled to a 50 percent share in the Dodgers.
They presently have a divorce case pending in Los Angeles County Superior Court. That case would rule on the validity of the post-nuptial agreement and determine who gets what in the McCourt divorce. While that case is pending, the McCourts are also participating in mediation, a form of dispute resolution that bypasses the courts and gives the parties an opportunity to reach a negotiated compromise. In our next post, we will go into more detail on the McCourts’ mediation and the case that is presently pending in court.
Sources: Los Angeles Times: Mediator gives McCourts settlement proposal; Bill Shaikin, 11/19/2010
Forbes.com: The Business Of Baseball, Los Angeles Dodgers (http://www.forbes.com/lists/2010/33/baseball-valuations-10_Los-Angeles-Dodgers_338671.html)
