Splitsville for Madonna and Guy Ritchie?

Remember Fiona Shackleton, the fiery and high profile divorce lawyer who came into the news following her negotiations on behalf of the Prince of Wales during his divorce proceedings with the late Princess Diana? And she did it successfully for Sir Paul McCartney, as well, during the divorce proceedings between him and Heather Mills that led to Heather getting a paltry $48.6 million of her demanded $160 million—still a tiny figure given Sir Paul’s $1.6 billion fortune. It seems that Madonna is next on “Fiery” Fiona’s list of rich and famous clients, following reports that she had been selected by the 49-year-old pop queen to be her legal advisor. Reason? Reportedly, Madonna and her film director hubby, Guy Ritchie, want to split.

According to a source close to the couple, Madonna and Guy haven’t been hitting it off for quite some time, so the divorce, though sad, would be neither unexpected nor exactly heartbreaking. And no one’s forgotten that the Material Girl was recently seen without her wedding ring—the source of the first spark of rumor about rift between the couple. While similar rumors of a split plagued the couple after Madonna married Guy, ten years her junior, in 2000, she had publicly denied any marital strife as recently as May. She said that Guy was never boring, and added that the love song “Incredible” featured on her latest hit album Hard Candy was dedicated to her husband.

However, even as reports came in that the duo are finally considering a split, Madonna’s spokesman refused to confirm that the $600-million singing sensation has actually approached the lawyer to advise her on the separation with Guy, although according to some reports, Madonna first met Fiona as early as April. Only time will tell what the future holds for Guy as Madonna potentially prepares some hard time for him with her chosen legal advisor.

But the juiciest part of the story is how the divorce, if it really takes place, will proceed. Reports have it that neither the pop diva nor her 39-year-old film director husband had any prenuptial agreement. This could mean, according to some legal sources, that there is a chance of a 50-50 sharing of wealth in a potential settlement. However, the length of the marriage and the wealth brought by one of the partners (and we know Madonna contributed more to the couple’s assets with her stellar performances before the marriage) is also likely to be taken into account. In that case, Madonna may end up only parting with $100 million out of her $600 million. She’ll also likely keep the children; Madonna, who brought Lourdes, 11, from a previous relationship to the marriage, had two more children with Guy after her seven-year-old marriage: Rocco Ritchie, 7; and David Banda, 21 months, whom the couple adopted from Malawi in 2006.