Britain’s biggest divorce case underway

A 10-day High Court hearing is currently underway to decide the final payout of the biggest divorce case in British legal history.

Princess Haya Bint al-Hussein is demanding a share of her husband, the ruler of Dubai, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid al-Maktoum’s £10 billion fortune.

The Jordanian Princess fled with their two children to the UK in 2019 following claims that she was “terrified” of her husband. The 47-year old and youngest of Sheikh Mohammed’s six wives is being represented by Baroness Shackleton who’s previous clients include Prince Charles and Sir Paul McCartney, is said to be the “most feared divorce lawyer in Britain”.

Although details of the hearing remain closed, the High Court will now decide the payout amount and welfare arrangements for their two children, Al Jalila, 13, and Zayed, 9. Experts predict that the settlement could exceed the record £450 million awarded to Tatiana Akhmedova, former wife of a Russian billionaire in 2017.

High Court judgments last month revealed that Princess Haya’s phone had been hacked by Sheikh Mohammed using the spyware tool Pegasus, developed by Israeli company NSO. The tool is supposed to be used to combat terrorism and serious crime, and according to NSO, is only permitted to be used for these specific purposes.

Sir Andrew McFarlane, president of the High Court’s family division ruled that Sheikh Mohammed, allowed his “servants or agents” to use the spyware to target the phones of Princess Haya and her lawyers Baroness Shackleton and Nick Manners, amongst others.

McFarlane referred to the hacking as an “abuse of power” by a head of government resulting in “serial breaches of (UK) domestic criminal law … in violation of fundamental common law and ECHR rights, interference with the process of this court and the mother’s access to justice”.

“The father [Sheikh Mohammed] who is the head of government of the UAE, is prepared to use the arm of the state to achieve what he regards as right. He has harassed and intimidated the mother [Princess Haya] both before her departure to England and since. He is prepared to countenance those acting on his behalf doing so unlawfully in the UK.”

Sheikh Mohammed has denied all allegations of hacking.

Last year, Sheikh Mohammed was found in the High Court to have “ordered and orchestrated” the abduction and forced return to Dubai of two of his adult daughters, Sheikha Shamsa in 2000 and her sister Sheikha Latifa in 2018.