Welcome to N Idaho.

[kc7jty]

http://img573.imageshack.us/img573/4328/lahti.png

put your best face forward (the Lahti couple)

[NA4BH]

Looks like they've had "An Ass Whuppin Good Time".

[W5RB]

Are those the lottery winners ?

[KG4CGC]

$190 million ... anyone still want to, sidle up to that?
ETA: Oh now I see she's being painted as an angel. OK.

[NA4BH]

They ought to just go ahead and give everything they own away and start living out of a box under a bridge. They ain't gonna be a rags to riches story.

[ki4itv]

:lol:
I ain't gotta gud feelin' about this one.
190 million is enough to buy all the trouble you can handle, and then some.

[W5RB]

http://abcnews.go.com/US/mega-millions-winner-holly-lahti-mugshot-battery-case/story?id=12617108

There's more story than the pics tell .

[NQ6U]

I take back what I said about $190 million making up for a lot of things.

[KG4CGC]

This will be a real dramatic situation. Hubby should just take his share and move as far away from her as possible, if he was smart.
Ah well, what do I know.

[kc7jty]

http://www.aolnews.com/2011/01/16/mega-millions-lottery-winner-holly-lahtis-story-marred-by-jarri/?icid=main%7Chp-laptop%7Cdl1%7Csec1_lnk3%7C195666

[ki4itv]

Allow me the pleasure of eating my words for a minute.
Mrs. will probably do fine. But, this probably won't be the last time we hear about estranged husband.

[W3WN]

For all the joking we were doing in the other thread the other day... this is going to end up ugly.

For the sake of her and her kids, I hope the hubby is willing to accept a big chunk, walk away, and never darken her door again. Even after taxes, there'll be more than enough.

But I have a hunch it won't go down so easy.

[kc7jty]

He hasn't paid any child support for years. Whatever he gets is going to be garnished by the state big time.

[W3WN]

He hasn't paid any child support for years. Whatever he gets is going to be garnished by the state big time.

...and then given right back to her. If they each get a pair of smart lawyers, this will all be negotiated.

Yeah, I know. IF.

[W5RB]

...and then given right back to her. If they each get a pair of smart lawyers, this will all be negotiated endlessly , until the entire prize is consumed in legal expenses .


Fixed that for ya . She might've been better off if she'd held back on her claim , pressed to complete the pending divorce , then claimed the prize . Set up a trust for the 2 kids , and let him sue for anything he thinks he could get . Hopefully this will work out for the best , and not turn into a reality show .

[W3WN]

Fixed that for ya . She might've been better off if she'd held back on her claim , pressed to complete the pending divorce , then claimed the prize . Set up a trust for the 2 kids , and let him sue for anything he thinks he could get . Hopefully this will work out for the best , and not turn into a reality show .
Well, that's why I said "smart" lawyers -- as in lawyers who actually do what's best for their clients, not their own pockets.

Lawyer jokes aside... there are a few like that. Mike K3AIR for one. Of course, he was a human being for a good many years before he finished law school and became a lawyer 4 years ago. That may make a difference.

Ahem.

Anyway, if either or both of the two start bickering, yes, the lawyers will end up with more of the $$$ than they should. And I don't think it would have mattered if she filed for divorce before she applied for the state -- you would think that his lawyer would argue in court (and probably win the argument) that since they were technically married at the time she won the prize...

This is why the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania (they are NOT a State, as they keep reminding us, but that's another story) requires that for any major prize (I think over $500, which has to be paid by the State Lottery folks in Harrisburg, not by the ticket agent... which means they know who you are for tax purposes, natch), both spouses MUST sign the ticket, even if they are separated, until they are legally divorced.

[W5RB]

Yep , the eventual outcome might well be the same , it'd just have put her in the power seat to make him come ask for it . And comparisons to buzzards or catfish aside , I've benefited twice in my life from dealing with attorneys . Positive dealings with two of them finally broke me of the habit I'd acquired just after the divorce , of always prefacing the word "lawyer" with "f###ing" .

[ab1ga]

... And I don't think it would have mattered if she filed for divorce before she applied for the state -- you would think that his lawyer would argue in court (and probably win the argument) that since they were technically married at the time she won the prize...
...


We had a similar situation here in Massachusetts with a Megabucks winner, so I asked a lawyer friend of mine about it. He basically said "Nice try, no dice." The winnings are an asset subject to division just like any other, and that asset comes into existence the second the winning numbers are drawn. He even said that failure to declare the existence of the winning ticket would constitute a fraud upon the court, with a readily anticipated unfavorable outcome.

Laws are written by packs of lawyers. Trying to skirt the law is trying to bamboozle a pack of lawyers. You need major mojo to pull that off, and most regular folks can't afford it.