A judge in Australia has ruled that a civil dispute over assets worth $23 million will end with one partner receiving $3 million.

The fueding pair, South Yarra art dealer Robert Gould, 56, and Geoffrey Smith, 44, split up in 2004.

Smith, the executive chairman of Sotheby's and a former curator of Australian art at the National Gallery of Victoria, sought half the property, art and cash amassed during the couple's 14-year relationship. He argued that his art expertise helped Mr. Gould's business, Gould Galleries, during their relationship.

The judge determined that Smith was entitled to $3 million due, in part, to his status as a college student when the two met in 1990.

Among the contested assets is the Gould-Smith collection, 53 artworks that the pair collected together.