There are times when the law doesn’t seem right. According to The Washington Post, a Michigan court ruled that a man who bought a lottery ticket and won must share the winnings with his ex-wife. The man bought the ticket and won two years after he and his now ex-wife filed for divorce. The court stated the two were still married when he won, and since they shared losses, the two should share winnings. The ticket after taxes is worth nearly $39 million – the ex is expected to receive nearly $15 million.
I know this is subject to much debate, but this doesn’t seem right to me. The couple was living separately after the divorce filing, so the two weren’t sharing living expenses. The two were living separate lives while they waited for the divorce to be finalized. I will say, the ex-wife is entitled to child support, particularly, since he was allegedly not making child support payments. That being said, getting such a large amount of the winnings when she wasn’t involved seems like crap.
I know the law is the law, and I understand they were legally married when he won, but I think being practical and using some common sense would dictate providing child support and some living expenses. Getting nearly $15 million – I think not. However, we all know that common sense and the law rarely intersect. In the end, he is getting nearly $24 million, so he’s not hurting.