LONDON -- They say money can't buy you love. But don't tell that to Heather Mills, who won a $48.6-million divorce settlement Monday from former Beatle Paul McCartney, concluding a case so nasty even this city's salacious tabloids may be glad to see the end of it.
But no -- it's not over yet. Mills, a mere minutes after declaring she was "just glad it's over," declared she would be back in court again today in an attempt to seal the full text of the divorce judgment, in what she said was an attempt to protect her young daughter.
"I won't go into the horrific details of what has happened," Mills said outside the High Court, as she proceeded through a 10-minute diatribe that lit into the judge (for allegedly undervaluing McCartney's assets), her ex-husband's lawyer (who "called me many, many names before even meeting me, when I was in a wheelchair"), and McCartney, who was accused of skimping on payments for first-class flights for the couple's 4-year-old daughter.
"She's obviously meant to travel B class, while her father travels A class," said Mills, 40, who married the 65-year-old musician, most often known in Britain as "Sir Paul," in 2002. The couple separated four years later, in April 2006.
"The most important thing for me was just to get this over and done with," Mills said.
McCartney, dressed in a conservative white shirt, blue tie and black raincoat, left the courthouse with a brief wave to reporters.
Mills, who represented herself after parting company with her lawyer, Anthony Julius, had sought an award of nearly $250 million, while McCartney countered with a settlement offer of $31.6 million.
The ruling includes about $33 million in cash and $15.6 million in assets, and also calls for the couple's daughter to receive support payments of $70,000 a year, plus nanny and school fees. Mills called it "an incredible result to secure mine and my daughter's future."
Judge Hugh Bennett's publicly released summary ruling found there was "no evidence at all" of Mills' claim that McCartney was worth $1.6 billion, finding that the total value of the musician's assets was closer to $800 million.
Mills said she is appealing release of the judgment because it would reveal details about her daughter -- including where she goes to school -- that ought to be kept private.
