Melinda Gates won't change last name after divorce
According to court documents, Melinda French Gates will not change her last name after divorcing Bill Gates, the founder of Microsoft.
The documents revealed that Melinda Gates did not ask to change her last name, as part of the divorce arrangements for her, reported Business Insider in the United States.
In addition, the court record indicates that the couple were already living apart, by the time Melinda French Gates filed the divorce petition.
In the papers, French Gates described the marriage as "irretrievably broken." Bill and Melinda Gates were married in Hawaii in 1994.
The couple met in 1987, and in 2021 they announced their separation, after 27 years of marriage.
In the statement on the divorce, they clarified that both would continue with their philanthropic work, together, in charge of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.
The marriage resulted in three daughters: Phoebe, 18, Rory, 21, and Jennifer, 25.
After much thought and hard work on our relationship, we have made the decision to end our marriage, "the two said in a statement posted on Bill Gates' official Twitter account.
We no longer believe that we can grow together as a couple in the next phase of our lives. We ask for space and privacy for our family as we begin to navigate this new life, "he concluded.
