Craig McCaw and Wendy McCaw divorced after 23 years of marriage. The settlement was reportedly about $460M. Settlement details, timeline and prenup facts.
Figures are reported estimates. Last updated Oct 2026.
Wendy used the settlement to buy the Santa Barbara News-Press newspaper for $100 million. In 2023 it filed for bankruptcy.
Craig McCaw is a visionary telecommunications entrepreneur who foresaw the potential of mobile telephones before most of corporate America had given the technology serious thought. He and Wendy Petrak married in 1974, when Craig was building his early cable television business. Wendy was a partner in Craig's life through the formative years of his career, and together they were part of the Pacific Northwest social and business elite alongside names like Bill Gates and Paul Allen.
Craig's fortune came primarily from McCaw Cellular, which he built into the largest independent cellular telephone operator in the United States during the 1980s. In 1994, he sold McCaw Cellular to AT&T for approximately $11.5 billion — one of the largest transactions in telecommunications history at the time. He later invested in Nextel and various satellite and broadband ventures.
Craig and Wendy married in 1974 and spent over two decades together as Craig built his telecommunications empire. Their divorce came in 1997, three years after the landmark AT&T sale that had crystallized Craig's fortune at an extraordinary level. The settlement was negotiated privately and reflected the scale of what had been accumulated during their marriage.
Wendy received a settlement estimated at approximately $460 million — a figure that, while smaller than the top-tier tech divorces that would follow, was among the largest of its era. The terms also reportedly included real estate and other assets beyond the headline cash figure.
Washington State's community property laws applied, meaning assets built during the marriage were subject to equal division. Given that the bulk of Craig's wealth had been accumulated during their marriage — through the growth and sale of McCaw Cellular — Wendy had a substantial and legally well-grounded claim. The settlement was arrived at without a prolonged court battle, suggesting both parties recognized the strength of her legal position.
Craig retained the bulk of his fortune and continued investing in telecommunications and technology ventures. He became a significant investor in Clearwire and pursued satellite broadband ambitions. Wendy, meanwhile, used her settlement in a remarkable way: she purchased the Santa Barbara News-Press, a well-regarded regional newspaper in California, and became its publisher — a decision that generated significant controversy when she clashed repeatedly with her own editorial staff.
The McCaw settlement was one of the largest in Washington State history and comparable to the Hamm divorce in terms of scale. It predated the era of social media scrutiny, which meant it received far less public attention than similarly sized settlements would attract today. Within the telecommunications industry, it was a notable benchmark.
Wendy McCaw's ownership of the Santa Barbara News-Press became one of the most contentious stories in American journalism for years, with the entire news staff resigning en masse in 2006 over allegations of editorial interference. Craig went on to invest in ambitious ventures including satellite internet and became a prominent environmentalist, funding conservation efforts across the Pacific Northwest.
Wendy McCaw's reported settlement was about $460 million.
They married in 1974 and divorced in 1997, a marriage of roughly 23 years.
No prenuptial agreement was reported.
Reported assets include: Cash from AT&T sale, real estate, investment holdings.
Washington State's community property laws applied, meaning assets built during the marriage were subject to equal division. Given that the bulk of Craig's wealth had been accumulated during their marriage — through the growth and sale of McCaw Cellular — Wendy had a substantial and legally well-grounded claim.