The 54-year-old, a former calendar model for Pirelli, was married to husband Sheikh Walid Juffali for 13 years. The model and the Saudi businessman, 61, have been battling each other in a drawn-out divorce case, which Ms Estrada has described as “bruising and distressing”.
She claims that Mr Juffali divorced her under Islamic Law in 2014without her knowledge, and also married someone else while still married to Ms Estrada. Further claims suggest that the businessman used his diplomatic immunity status to block a legally binding settlement being made to her.
£196 million sought for ‘needs’
Ms Estrada originally sought to receive a settlement of £196 million from her ex-husband, which she claims was required to meet her “needs”. The couple have a daughter together and Ms Estrada currently lives in the marital home near to Windsor Great Park in Berkshire, but one of the more extraordinary claims in the case was that the former supermodel required £1 million a year in order to buy clothes. When questioned further on this, Ms Estrada revealed that she needed:
- £40,000 a year for fur coats
- £21,000 a year for shoes
- £109,000 a year for haute couture dresses
Also included in the list of essentials were a luxury London home (£60 million), a country home in Henley-on-Thames (£4.4 million) and five cars split between the UK and the US (£495,000 in total). Justifying what some would perceive as excessive and extravagant “needs”, Ms Estrada said:
"I was a top international model. I have lived this life. This is what I am accustomed to."
She rejected an initial offer that would have given her £37 million to live on, and has now been awarded a sum that, when added to her own assets, will give her £75 million to live on. Her lawyers had claimed that Mr Juffali, who is terminally ill with cancer and was unable to attend court, was worth £8 billion. He claims this is a “fantasy” figure, and in a written statement said that his net worth is actually around £113.8 million.
Speaking after the settlement was announced by the High Court, BBC News reports that Ms Estrada said:
"Having grown up in a middle-class family and having enjoyed a successful career until my marriage, I am fully aware that the spectacular life Walid and I led was immensely fortunate and rarefied.
"And I fully understand how this can be perceived in the wider world.
"My focus now is to support my daughter and move forward with our lives."
Conflict in divorce cases inevitably involves the issue of money, and can drag on for far too long unless you’ve got an expert in your corner to negotiate the process. The experienced Wirral family law experts at Tracey Miller will fight your corner, aiming to get you exactly what you’re entitled to and bring the process to a satisfactory resolution as quickly as possible.