The divorce case between Heather Mills and Sir Paul McCartney made for lively reading. It also provided a new insight into how the High Court might view short marriages that involve considerable assets.

Mills received less than a fifth of the £125m she was claiming. A significant factor in the judge’s decision was the duration of the marriage. As the couple did not live together before marriage the court ruled their relationship was only “true and settled” from their wedding day in June 2002. On this basis it lasted less than four years.