It is official! Co-founders of one of the world’s largest private charitable foundations, Bill and Melinda Gates have signed their divorce papers. After a 27-year marriage, the divorce between the wealthy pair, was finalized on Monday August 2nd, as revealed by their court document.
Melinda French Gates’ petition for divorce, filed to the court on May 3, stated that the couple’s relationship was “irretrievably broken.” The divorce paperwork finalized on Monday said that she would not change her name and did not offer any spousal support, which French Gates said was unnecessary in her original filing.
The court did not issue money, property or spousal support judgments in the divorce. It said the couple must comply with the terms of the separation contract that was not filed in King county superior court.
Bill Gates, 65, and French Gates, 56, first announced their divorce in a joint statement in May, saying they no longer “believe we can grow together as a couple in this next phase of our lives.”
“After a great deal of thought and a lot of work on our relationship, we have made the decision to end our marriage,” they said in the statement. “Over the last 27 years, we have raised three incredible children and built a foundation that works all over the world to enable all people to lead healthy, productive lives.”