Rupert Murdoch’s divorce from his wife of 14 years, Wendi Deng Murdoch, is nearly final and the sides are close to amicably resolving the matter, a person familiar with the situation said on Tuesday.
The pair will appear in a New York court on Wednesday to formalise the agreement, said the person, who spoke on condition of anonymity because the matter is personal.
The divorce won’t alter the succession plan for the pair of media companies - 21st Century Fox and the recently spun-off publishing company, News Corp - that 82-year-old Rupert Murdoch controls through a family trust.
That trust benefits his elder children by previous marriages - Prudence, Elisabeth, Lachlan and James. All of them except Prudence have an active role in the companies and upon Rupert Murdoch’s death, each will have an equal say in what happens to the roughly 38 per cent voting stock the trust holds in both companies.
pegged Rupert Murdoch and his family’s wealth at US$13.4 billion (HK$104 billion) in September.
