The divorce proceedings hit an unexpected turn when McCartney’s 38-year-old wife accused him of physically harming her, and of consuming alcohol and drugs excessively.
The former model stated that McCartney was violent toward her on four occasions. These allegations were submitted in a 13-page document at the court dealing with the proceedings.
The document depicts the former Beatle, 64 years of age, as a tyrant that treated his wife as a "an old woman in the home".
If these allegations are founded, the musician may need to pay his ex-wife over $1.5 billion dollars. McCartney finds this document degrading. His close friends and family claim that it was a way of "orchestrating" the leak to maximise sympathy for her.
Paul McCartney and Heather Mills were married in June 2002, without signing a prenuptial agreement. They separated in May 2006. They have a young girl.