Nigella Lawson leaving a private residence with her daughter Cosima in London on June 21, 2013.KPB
Celebrity chef Nigella Lawson ended her 10-year-marriage this week in a court proceeding that lasted just 70 seconds.
A district judge on Wednesday granted her and billionaire husband Charles Saatchi a "decree nisi," which means the couple has agreed to divorce and the judge has accepted their reasons. They will now have to wait six weeks to apply for a "decree absolute," which will make the divorce final.
Lawson, who petitioned for the divorce, cited "unreasonable behaviour" in court papers and said the marriage had "irretrievably broken down."
Neither she nor Saatchi appeared in court when the decree nisi was granted.
Last month, photographs went viral showing Saatchi, 70, apparently choking Lawson, 50, outside a London restaurant. Saatchi tried to dismiss the incident as a "playful tiff" but accepted a police citation for assault.
Lawson is being represented by Fiona Shackleton, who is her cousin and represented Paul McCartney in his divorce.
Many celebrity divorces have dragged out over months if not years. Kim Kardashian's split from Kris Humphries was finalized 19 months after she applied to end the marriage.
Demi Moore filed divorce papers in March and she is still fighting former hubby Ashton Kutcher over the financial terms of their settlement.
Lawson and Saatchi confirmed they will not make any financial claims against each other, The Guardian reported.
According to Statistics Canada data from 2010 to 2011, the median length of contested divorce cases in the country was 490 days, compared to 120 days for uncontested cases.
Dave McGinn