Making mistakes is a part of human nature. Luckily for most of us, our mistakes have never cost us $11 million dollars. Manhattan business tycoon Daniel Rosenblum can no longer say the same, after forgetting to sign his divorce paperwork cost him a sizeable fortune.
Daniel Rosenbaum, age 70, made his money trading sugar commodities. While his exact net worth is not known, he is a multimillionaire many times over. His ex-wife Sheila is a former model and ballerina who now owns and trains thoroughbred racehorses.
Daniel married Sheila in 1990. They divorced four years later, then remarried in 1996. The couple was married for 12 years before finally splitting up for good in 2014.
In 2013, shortly before their second divorce, Daniel and Sheila’s attorneys worked out a divorce settlement agreement worth several hundred million dollars. As part of that agreement, Daniel was supposed to pay Sheila $61 million in spousal support. Sheila would receive $11 million up front, with the remaining $50 million to be paid over four years. The agreement also called for Sheila to receive the couple’s $30 million Park Avenue apartment as well as an additional $90 million upon Daniel’s death.
Sheila ended up taking Daniel to court over multiple issues before their divorce was finalized. As the divorce case dragged on, Sheila and Daniel agreed to negotiate a new spousal support arrangement. Apparently, Daniel was unable to make such large cash payments to his former spouse, and Sheila agreed to accept payments of $5 million per year for 12 years instead. Both divorce settlements agreements likely took months of negotiations and teams of attorneys to complete.
For some reason, the second divorce settlement was never actually signed by the parties or their attorneys, even though the agreement was filed with the court. Several months later, Sheila (or her lawyers) noticed the mistake, and moved to vacate the agreement and enforce the original divorce settlement.
A judge agreed that the lack of signatures made the second agreement void and ordered Daniel to immediately pay his ex-wife $11 million. He will also be required to pay the remaining $50 million over the next four years. When asked about the mistake, Daniel told the New York Post, “I’ll be bankrupt before she’s done.”
The case proves that no matter how much money a person has, there is no substitute for thorough, experienced legal representation. While anyone can make a mistake, it is relatively inconceivable that a team of attorneys could have missed the most important part of the settlement agreement.
At Pacific Northwest Family Law, our attorneys take pride in the quality of our representation. No matter how big or small your case is, we will work to make sure that nothing falls through the cracks. If you need help with a divorce, child custody, or other family law issue, schedule an appointment with Pacific Northwest Family Law today by calling 877-738-0777.
