James Bond Star In Bitter Divorce

August 27th, 2008 by Hadley | Posted in Custody, Family Law, Star Parenting | No Comments »

George Lazenby and Pam Shriver were in court this week where requests to have court documents sealed from the press were denied. Shriver, a five time Wimbledon doubles champion, filed for divorce earlier in the month and is seeking custody of their three children. Lazenby, a former James Bond star, denies allegations from his wife that he is a drunk and has given alcohol to their children. Shriver has denied allegations that she is addicted to sleeping pills and alcohol and has driven while intoxicated with the children.

Christina Master, a former wife of Lazenby, accused her former husband of abuse during their marriage and claims he once broke her nose. Their child, Melanie, who is now 34, also claims her father was abusive and “emotionally tormented” her as a child. Lazenby denies all of those claims. Master and Lazenby divorced in 1994.

Lazenby and Shriver were married in 2002. Currently, Lazenby has temporary daytime visitation but will have to undergo alcohol testing and anger mangagement. Often in these types of cases the court will appoint a guardian ad litem - someone who is designated to represent the best interests of the children. The guardian has access to school records, medical records, interviews the parties and various other witnesses, and can request psychological and/or alcohol evaluations of the parties. The guardian then makes a recommendation to the court regarding custody and visitation. The judge is not bound by the recommendation of the guardian, but it is often helpful for them to hear from someone who is advocating for the children, and not for their position as a parent.

Strahan To Pay Less Child Support

August 27th, 2008 by Hadley | Posted in Child Support, Custody, Divorce Trends | No Comments »

The state appeals court in New York has reversed a lower court’s ruling on child support paid by Michael Strahan. The former New York Giant was paying approximately $18,000 a month in support for his twin daughters, but the higher court has ruled the lower court should have modified that amount due to the extraordinary expenses sought by his former wife.

According to the AP, Strahan’s ex-wife, Jean, claimed the daughters needed a $27,000 clothing allowance, because the 3 year olds need new outfits everytime they see their father. She also included extravagent gifts to the children’s grandmother and nanny (including a Jamaican vacation for the nanny).

The court also ruled Strahan does not have to pay approximately $14,000 for his former wife’s legal fees.

The couple married in 1999 but finalized their bitter divorce in 2007. During the divorce, Strahan was accused of abusing his former wife. Initially the court ruled he had to pay his ex-wife $15 million but he appealed and the parties settled for a lesser amount.

There seems to be a trend with courts taking a harder look at what custodial parents claim they need for child support. The problem that multi-millionaires face when they are subject to child support is they earn so much more than the average person that it seems unfair that their child should live a lifestyle radically different than the parent they are not living with. For example, if your dad earns $10 million a year playing football, should you have to go to public school and live in a bad neighborhood just becuase you live with your mom? The flip side of the argument is, child support should not be a means of support for the custodial parent. And clearly, it’s hard to see how a three year old could possibly cost $18,000 a month. To try to work around this, you can sometimes agree that the non-custodial parent will pay the private school tuition directly to the school, or set up a college trust fund.

Chris Kattan to Divorce, Shaq’s Stalking

August 25th, 2008 by Hadley | Posted in Divorce Trends, Prenuptial Agreements, Star Divorces | No Comments »

After two months of marriage, Chris Kattan and wife, Sunshine Tutt, have legally separated. Kattan filed papers on August 10th and cited “irreconcilable differences” as the cause of separation. A Kattan representative has announced the two do not plan to divorce. The couple met in 2005 and were married on June 28th in 2008. Legal documents filed in the separation confirm the couple did have a prenuptial agreement. Not that there will be much to split after a two month marriage, but you never know.

Shaquille O’Neal and his wife filed for divorce over a year ago but that divorce was officially dismissed today. Also today, Shaq was hit with a restraining order from MaryJane (hip hop artist), who claims Shaq has been terrorizing and stalking her. Shaq’s wife, Shaunie, may have an issue with this since they have supposedly reconciled. One thing is for sure, he certainly has been a busy man.

Wahlberg and Wife both file for Divorce

August 19th, 2008 by Hadley | Posted in Divorce Trends | No Comments »

It looks like both New Kid Donnie Wahlberg and his wife raced to the courthouse to see who could file first. According to TMZ, Wahlberg filed divorce papers in Ventura County Superior Court at 3:46 PM last week, but his wife, Kim Fey, filed earlier that same day around 1:30 at the LA County Courthouse. The couple have been married since 1999 but separated earlier this year. They have two children.

According to papers filed by Fey, she is seeking sole custody, spousal support and legal fees from Wahlberg. She also cited visitation rights for Wahlberg. Details of Wahlberg’s intentions have not been released but a representative did confirm the couple’s separation and said they remain friends.

The couple site “irreconcilable differences” as the cause for divorce. TMZ has also reported Wahlberg was in Las Vegas last weekend supposedly celebrating

Dixie Chick Divorced

August 18th, 2008 by Erin | Posted in Custody, Star Parenting | No Comments »

People.com is reporting Dixie Chick, Emily Robison, and her singer-husband Charlie Robison are now divorced. Reportedly, Charlie Robison filed for divorce in January and the couple divorced quietly on August 6th. According to People.com, “the couple’s divorce filing states that the marriage had “become insupportable because of discord or conflict of personalities.”

The couple married in 1999 and have three children. However, custody details or spousal support has not been disclosed to the public.

The Robison’s experienced fertility issues and Emily has publicly discussed the difficult aspects of touring on the family. Although it’s unknown why the couple decided to divorce, having two parents on the road touring may have taken its toll on the marriage. As much as we would all love to know the details, both parents deserve a lot of credit for keeping their divorce, and especially their custody issues out of the news and protecting their children.

McGreevey off the hook for alimony

August 18th, 2008 by Erin | Posted in Uncategorized | No Comments »

The self-proclaimed “gay American” and former Governor of New Jersey, has won his case regarding alimony sought from his former wife, Dina Matos. As you may recall, four years ago Gov. McGreevey had to resign due to the revelation of his scandalous affair. The couple later filed for divorce and four years later, it has been finalized. The former First Lady will not receive the nearly $1 million she sought from proceeds from his book and the sale of their home.

The judge in the case believed Matos lived a lavish lifestyle and did not grant her the $2,500 a month Matos was seeking in alimony. She will receive $1,075 a month in child support, nearly $700 less than she believed she needed. Matos will also receive $109,295, which represents a split in their assets.

Since the couple were only married 4 1/2 years, the judge in the case felt Matos was not entitled to any more from McGreevey. According to the NY Post: “Cassidy soundly rejected Matos’ claims that she should be compensated for the perks - including housekeepers, a secretary, drivers, cooks and clothing allowances - she lost when her husband resigned in 2004, admitting an affair with a male aide. The wife’s amenities, the judge ruled, were “inherently temporary.” Cassidy wrote, “Mrs. McGreevey was not with Mr. McGreevey long enough to be entitled to continue that lifestyle.” Cassidy did find that McGreevey - who is in seminary school and says he makes $48,000 a year - is “underemployed,” but has a rich boyfriend in financier Mark O’Donnell. The judge estimated that with his background and education, McGreevey could be making $175,000 a year. She based child support on that sum, coupled with the $82,000 a year she said Matos is capable of earning.” This ruling is consistent with a trend we are seeing in family law in Georgia for lower child support awards and limited alimony for a short marriage. Also, the fact that Mrs. McGreevey was overreaching a bit, certainly did not help her gain favor with this judge.

Hogan divorce settlement - for now

August 18th, 2008 by Erin | Posted in Divorce Trends | No Comments »

A judge has decided Linda Hogan will receive a whopping $40,000 a month from Hulk, which is tax free (alimony payments are taxed to the recipient as income, so clearly this is some type of property disburement), for living expenses while the divorce is finalized. However, it has also been ruled the couple do not have to purchase the much disputed Las Vegas condo in which they will lose the $800,000 they put down. The Hogans had previously put a contract down on the luxurious condo, at the time valued at over $4 million. However, a few months later they filed for divorce. Linda’s lawyers argued the condo should still be purchased and sold for investment reasons but Hulk’s lawyers cited the poor housing market as a reason not to buy. In the end, it looks like a minor win for Hulk in that regard.

As their divorce is finalized, the couple’s money issues are bound to get tighter as their son serves an eight month sentence in jail for his part of a car crash which left his passenger permanently disabled. The family of the victim may sue the Hogan’s son and/or family due to the circumstances involved in the case, and the financial information that is disclosed as part of the divorce will definetly be of interest to them.

Another Baseball Divorce

August 18th, 2008 by Erin | Posted in Uncategorized | No Comments »

Jason Varitek, catcher and team captain for the Boston Red Sox, and wife Karen have filed for divorce. They were married in 1997 and have three children. The couple filed for divorce in Gwinnett County, Georgia and live in the area in the off season. He is also in the final year of a $40 million contract with Boston and will be a free agent at the end of the year.

Varitek has had a rough year on the field and his batting average is certainly not helping his chances for a better deal from Boston. Rumors have also been circling that he has had an affair with a Red Sox sideline reporter. Although Varitek has denied all rumors, the couple have not announced a reason for the split.

After the recent ARod and Madonna rumors, future baseball players may need to be a bit more cautious and be sure to get those pre-nups.

Phil Collins Divorce Settlement is Britain’s Biggest

August 18th, 2008 by Erin | Posted in Uncategorized | No Comments »

Phil Collins and wife Orianne Cevey, 35 have settled their divorce and Cevey will receive a $46.76 million pay out. That is $2 million more than Paul McCartney’s divorce settlement to Heather Mills and now Britain’s biggest celebrity divorce settlement.

Collins and Cevey have reportedly been separated since the beginning of the year and decided to divorce for the good of their children. It has also been reported Collins will continue to live in Switzerland to be near his children.

This is Collins’ third, and most costly, divorce. The couple met while he was on tour and married in 1994. Also that year, Collins divorced his second wife. According to People.com, “Second wife Jill Tavelman received $34 million after he ended their relationship by fax in 1994.”

Collins and his third wife share two children. He also has three other children from his two previous marriages. His net worth is estimated at $280 million.

Another Hollywood Marriage Bites the Dust

July 22nd, 2008 by Erin | Posted in Divorce Trends, Family Law | No Comments »

Sienna Miller announced her breakup from Rhys Ifans back in June, and now we may know why. Miller has been all over (literally) the internet with Brothers & Sisters star, Balthazar Getty, who is married with four children. Miller, who is no stranger to relationship drama, told People back in June “I’m not victimizing myself, I’m not this tragic figure… I make decisions. I take responsibility for them.”

Meanwhile, Getty’s wife isn’t taking the news of her husband’s new relationship as well. She has reportedly left the country with the children, including their ten month old, due to the humiliation. Getty has now publicly admitted the couple are separated.

Looks as if Miller didn’t learn much from her public break-up from Jude Law, after he cheated on her with the nanny. Whether or not Getty has left his wife for the young actress is unknown, but it’s never a good idea to be photographed making out with another woman, especially when you are a married father of four.