LONDON – A British legal battle ensues between Russia’s wealthiest man, Vladimir Potanin, and his ex-wife Natalia Potanina, for a share of his mining empire worth billions of dollars. In a groundbreaking ruling, the UK Supreme Court delivered a split decision in Potanin’s favor, raising the stakes for claimants seeking divorce settlements following overseas marriages. However, the judges have acknowledged the need for further court hearings in this high-profile divorce case.
Potanin, a sanctioned billionaire, sought to dismiss his former partner’s claim altogether. Natalia Potanina is demanding permission to file a lawsuit seeking as much as $9 billion from her ex-husband. London’s divorce courts have become a favored destination for battles over astronomical sums, with judges often inclined to order a more equitable distribution of a couple’s assets. The largest known divorce payout in the UK currently stands at £450 million ($571 million), awarded to the wife of billionaire Farkhad Akhmedov – though they ultimately settled with a lesser amount.
The Supreme Court’s 3-2 decision found procedural unfairness in the way a court of appeals had previously considered whether Natalia’s claim should proceed. The court is required to decide afresh, after hearing argument from both sides, whether the order should be made or not, Judge George Leggatt stated in the ruling.
Both parties have welcomed the decision. Potanin’s legal team believes that English courts will now exercise greater scrutiny when allowing cases to proceed following overseas divorces. Fiona Shackleton, Potanin’s lawyer at Payne Hicks Beach, stated, Divorce tourists will now have their claims subject to fair and robust scrutiny before being granted leave in this jurisdiction. It is long overdue.
The senior judges expressed their interest in whether English courts should consider granting financial assistance claims from individuals with minimal connections to the country. However, they noted that such a determination would require a case where the relevant issues were raised.
Frances Hughes, lawyer for Natalia Potanina at Hughes Fowler Carruthers, stated, The Court of Appeal will now focus on the merits of her case rather than on procedure.
Vladimir Potanin has amassed a $31.8 billion fortune mainly through his stakes in MMC Norilsk Nickel PJSC, the largest producer of high-grade nickel in the world, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index.
In earlier proceedings, lower court judges criticized the paltry award Natalia received in the initial Russian divorce proceedings, considering the billionaire’s wealth and their 31-year-long marriage. The case has already alternated between courts, with a lower court accusing Natalia of seeking a divorce settlement abroad before she subsequently won an appeal. Although the couple resided in Russia throughout their marriage, Natalia purchased a property in Westminster in 2014.
Natalia Potanina is seeking 50% of the value of Vladimir’s stake in Nornickel, along with dividends. Given Potanin’s ownership of about one-third of the company’s shares, this would amount to an excess of $5 billion.
Potanin has taken advantage of restrictions on foreign ownership of Russian assets, diversifying into finance and purchasing stakes in banks as international owners withdrew their investments. Following his acquisition of a stake in Rosbank, Potanin faced UK sanctions and later landed on the US blacklist. Prior to that, he had largely escaped the Western sanctions that affected other members of the Russian elite.
While Nornickel has remained unaffected by Western sanctions, the fallout from the Ukraine invasion has disrupted the company’s logistics and shipping operations.
This high-stakes divorce battle between Vladimir Potanin and Natalia Potanina will undoubtedly continue to captivate the public, shedding light on the complexities of divorces involving immense wealth and international marriages. As the legal proceedings unfold, the world watches with bated breath to see how the courts navigate the question of fairness and equity in the distribution of such vast assets.
