Jamie McCourt is giving up her claim to the Dodgers in exchange for $130 million in cash - but she and estranged husband Frank are still finalizing details over what to do about the couple's many posh homes and real estate holdings, a source close to the negotiations told NBC LA Monday.
Still, the source said, if both sides follow through on their promises, the agreement will finally settle California's most expensive divorce proceedings.
And fans hope that will free the Dodgers to rebuild their sagging brand.
"Thank God it's over," fan Courtney Ellis-Motta wrote on the NBC LA Facebook page. "Now maybe the team can move forward."
Share Your Thoughts: NBCLA on Facebook
News of the cash settlement was first reported Monday by Los Angeles Times sports reporter Bill Shaiken, who has followed the case closely. It was confirmed independently by NBC LA.
Local
Get Los Angeles's latest local news on crime, entertainment, weather, schools, COVID, cost of living and more. Here's your go-to source for today's LA news.
Shaiken wrote that the agreement, if implemented, would remove Jamie McCourt as an obstacle to Frank McCourt's plan to retain ownership of the team by selling the Dodgers' television rights in U.S. Bankruptcy Court. It could also set up showdown over control of the Dodgers between Frank McCourt and baseball Commissioner Bud Selig, Shaiken wrote.
Frank McCourt bought the Dodgers from its previous owner, Rupert Murdoch's NewsCorp, in 2004 for $430 million. He promptly installed Jamie as a top executive. The pair moved to Los Angeles from Massachusetts, where McCourt had made his fortune as a developer of parking lots and other real estate.
But the Hollywood life took its toll, and the pair - now richer by many houses and considerably better styled and coiffed - split up in 2009. They had been married nearly 30 years.
The proceedings quickly became rancorous, with Jamie claiming a share in the Dodgers and Frank insisting that under a post-nuptial agreement, Jamie was not considered an owner of the team. A court eventually threw out the agreement.
Frank McCourt, meanwhile, had trouble meeting the Dodgers' payroll. The team filed for bankruptcy on June 27, 2011.
The Dodgers also suffered. There was big dropoff in attendance and the team struggled in the early part of the 2011 season.
Selig, the baseball commissioner, appointed former Texas Rangers executive Tom Schieffer to oversee the team's finances and operations. Selig has repeatedly expressed displeasure with Frank McCourt's stewardship of the team, and has asked the bankruptcy court to order McCourt to sell the team.
In its story Monday, the Times reported that the McCourts incurred $20.6 million in legal bills related to the divorce through July, according to Los Angeles Superior Court filings by each of the parties.
Follow NBCLA for the latest LA news, events and entertainment: Twitter: @NBCLA // Facebook: NBCLA
