Settlement: $741M
Cost/Day: $104K
They divorced twice: first in 1986, remarried in 1991, then divorced again in 2010. Elaine received a massive stake in Wynn Resorts.
Steve Wynn is the casino developer who effectively reinvented Las Vegas, transforming it from a mob-run gambling town into a luxury resort destination. Elaine Pascal met Steve at the University of Pennsylvania, and they married young. Together they built one of the most recognisable brands in global hospitality: Wynn Resorts, whose properties in Las Vegas and Macau set new standards for opulence. Their relationship was as dramatic as the hotels they built — they divorced once, remarried, and then divorced again.
Steve began in the casino business with modest holdings in Las Vegas and transformed his ambitions with the opening of The Mirage in 1989 — widely credited as the resort that launched modern Las Vegas. He followed it with Bellagio, Treasure Island, and eventually the Wynn and Encore properties, each redefining luxury hospitality. Elaine was deeply involved in the business for decades, serving on the board and playing a key role in design and operations.
Steve and Elaine first married in the 1960s and built their early careers together. They divorced for the first time in 1986, before the era of their greatest successes. Remarkably, they reconciled and remarried in 1991, this time as partners in one of the most valuable casino empires in the world. Their second marriage lasted until 2010, when they separated for the final time.
The second divorce was the consequential one financially: Elaine received a massive stake in Wynn Resorts valued at approximately $741 million at the time of the settlement. The shareholding made her one of the most significant individual investors in the company and gave her ongoing influence over its direction.
Elaine's legal team successfully argued that her contribution to Wynn Resorts — both in the boardroom and in shaping the company's identity and culture — had been central to its success. Her decades of involvement made any claim that the fortune was solely Steve's creation difficult to sustain. The settlement reflected her genuine equity in what they had built together.
The divorce did not immediately remove Elaine from Wynn Resorts — she remained a major shareholder and board member, creating an unusual situation of corporate entanglement between divorced spouses. The arrangement became deeply contentious: in 2012, Steve engineered a reduction in her board influence, leading Elaine to sue. The boardroom battles between the two proved as dramatic as their personal history.
The Wynn settlement was notable not just for its size but for its complexity. Unlike cash settlements or straightforward stock transfers, Elaine's stake in a publicly traded company she had helped build created ongoing governance complications. It is frequently cited in both corporate law and divorce law as an example of how personal and professional entanglements can create lasting business consequences.
Steve Wynn resigned from Wynn Resorts in 2018 following sexual misconduct allegations, which he denied. Elaine, as a major shareholder, was deeply affected by the subsequent fall in the company's share price. The episode illustrated how the personal and professional remained inextricably linked long after their divorce. Their story is sometimes described in business schools as a cautionary tale about mixing marriage and co-ownership.