Kelis’ Expenses Exceed $80,000 Per Month

June 18th, 2009 by Hadley | Posted in Child Support, Divorce Trends | No Comments »

No wonder Kelis is going after Nas for some financial support. According to TMZ, Kelis just filed her financial affidavit with the court and her monthly expenses are $80,831 per month. What, you may ask yourself, does one spend $80,831 a month on? Well, $14,861 goes to the mortgage, the nanny is $3,500 a month, and then you have your entertainment, gifts and vacations at $15,000 per month. Kelis claims her income is only $21,616 per month and that most of her income comes from her concerts. Unfortunately for her, she hasn’t toured in a year. It will be interesting to see how the court views her spending in light of her income and the $60,000 short fall she has in her budget every month.

Billy Joel and Wife Split

June 17th, 2009 by Hadley | Posted in Divorce Trends, Family Law | 1 Comment »

According to the New York Post, after five years of marriage, Billy Joel and current wife Katie Lee have announced they are divorcing. Rumors have swirled for months that Lee has been having an affair with Yigal Azrouel, a fashion designer who often escorts her to events. Much has been made of the age difference between Joel, 60, and Lee, 27. For those wondering, Azrouel is a more age appropriate 36. Joel met Lee when she worked as a restaurant correspondent for a television show on PBS, and they married at his Long Island home in October 2004. This was Joel’s third marriage: his first was to his business manager, Elizabeth Weber, which ended in divorce in 1982 after nine years, and he split from second wife Christy Brinkley, in 1994, also after nine years of marriage.

Kelis Claims Poverty In Divorce From Nas

June 15th, 2009 by Hadley | Posted in Child Support, Family Law, Star Divorces | No Comments »

According to TMZ, Kelis, the soon to be ex-wife of rapper Nas, is claiming the rapper has left her penniless in the wake of the impending birth of their child. The couple married in 2003 and the baby is due this month. Kelis filed legal papers claiming she is broke and Nas isn’t paying her any support, including any of the pre-natal expenses related to their child. Kelis is asking that the court order Nas to pay spousal support, child support, all pregnancy related expenses, $3,500 for a nurse after the child’s birth, and $20,000 for baby supplies such as strollers and cribs.
Interestingly enough, Kelis, in her claim that she is entitled to maintain the lifestyle she became accustomed to during the marriage, listed a bevy of pricey jewelry she has, including “… a princess-cut diamond tennis bracelet that was recently appraised for $190,000. My engagement ring is an approximately nine-carat cushion-cut diamond solitaire. I have numerous watches…such as Cartier, Rolex, Frank Muller and Chopard.”
You would think that if Kelis were that broke, she would be selling some of the jewelry. Although in Georgia, when a divorce is filed, there is an automatic standing order that issues preventing parties from disposing of marital assets, except in the ordinary course of business, so perhaps California has a similar order that is preventing her from doing so. Or maybe she would rather just hang on to the jewels and have Nas pony up some cash.

Usher Files For Divorce

June 15th, 2009 by Hadley | Posted in Child Support, Custody, Family Law | No Comments »

Usher has filed for divorce from his wife of almost two years, Tameka Foster Raymond. According to TMZ, Usher filed in Fulton County, Georgia, on Friday, June 12th. Usher and Tameka have two children, ages 18 months and 6 months. No news on whether or not the couple has a prenuptial agreement. The bad news for Tameka is that Georgia is an equitable property state, and given that the marriage lasted less than two years, it is unlikely she is going to walk away with much as far as marital assets. The good news is they have two really young children, so assuming she is the children’s primary physical custodian, she will be collecting child support for years to come. However, under the Georgia child support statute, once you earn $360,000 a year the presumptive amount of child support levels out. So assuming no other expenses, such as a nanny, Usher’s presumptive child support for two children is only $3,066.00 per month. Not exactly enough to support a lifestyle of the rich and famous.

Rumble in the Seymour - Brant Divorce Jungle

June 9th, 2009 by Hadley | Posted in Custody, Star Divorces | No Comments »

It’s a definite sign your divorce is getting ugly when both parties hire body guards. Former supermodel Stephanie Seymour is getting divorced from her polo-playing husband Peter Brant after 16 years of marriage. According to the New York Post’s Page 6, Seymour was issued a public-disturbance summons Saturday night after she yanked the keys out of a Brant-hired security guard’s car, threw them in the bushes, and then used her Range Rover to block the driveway of the couple’s Greenwich, Conn., estate. On Thursday, a Brant guard was busted for allegedly shoving Seymour. Seymour since has hired her own guards.
Seymour is a former Victoria’s Secret Angel and a Sports Illustrated swimsuit model. Brant made his fortune with White Birch Paper Co., which operates pulp and paper mills.
The battle is expected to get even uglier because Brant is asking for custody of the couple’s three children, ages 4 to 15, and has accused Seymour of being an unfit mother. Proving someone is an unfit parent is pretty tough. Especially if, as it appears Brant has done, you leave the kids with the alleged unfit parent while you travel out of town. Or in this case, out of the country. It becomes a credibility issue when the parent is willing to leave the kids with the other parent while they’re married, but as soon as the divorce is filed, claims that parent is unfit. So we’ll have to stay tuned and see what happens.

Brian Grazer’s Divorce Final

May 22nd, 2009 by Hadley | Posted in Family Law, Prenuptial Agreements | 1 Comment »

Producer Brian Grazer and wife, Gigi’s, marriage of eleven years is over. Gigi will receive a one-time payment of $4.5 million, another $8.75 million to pay off the balance on a piece of property that is already in her name, and $40,000 a month in child support for their two kids, of whom they will share custody. This is what your mother meant when she told you it is just as easy to fall in love with a rich man (or woman) as a poor one.
Luckily Grazer had the foresight to have a prenuptial agreement because Gigi was originally asking for nearly $1 million a month is alimony and child support. She also managed to rack up almost $500,000 in attorney fees, no doubt trying to get out of the prenuptial agreement. Grazer has been ordered to pay her attorney fees.

William Lauder and Wife Split

May 19th, 2009 by Hadley | Posted in Uncategorized | No Comments »

In a surprise to no one, Estée Lauder CEO/president William Lauder and his wife of 22 years, Karen, have separated and are divorcing. The couple has two children, but it is William’s third child, born to William and his non-wife Taylor Stein, that may be the cause of the divorce. Per the New York Post, Taylor is now suing Lauder for the $500,000 a year she says he promised her in a contract if she moved to LA and stayed away from his family. Lauder’s lawyers claim Stein breached the agreement by introducing the baby to her grandparents, Leonard and Evelyn Lauder.
Apparently William tried to minimize the friction his out of wedlock child with Stein could cause in his marriage by making an agreement with Stein. He bought Stein a house in California and agreed to pay her $500,000 a year in child support through the year 2017. In return, Stein agreed to stay away from his family, and not come to New York for more than two weeks a year.
Child support, unlike alimony, is not taxed as income to the receiver, so by classifying the $500,000 per year payments as child support, Lauder was bearing all of the tax consequences and Stein was receiving the money tax free.

Penn Divorce Back On Again

May 1st, 2009 by Hadley | Posted in Divorce Trends, Family Law | No Comments »

After attempting a reconciliation, Sean Penn has filed for legal separation from his wife, Robin Wright Penn. In the legal papers filed in Marin County, California, Sean is asking for joint custody of the couple’s two teenage children. He has also asked the court to not award spousal support to Robin.

The couple had previously filed for divorce in 2007 but reconciled four months later. According to People, “The couple began dating in the early ’90s, following his divorce from Madonna in 1989, and married in 1996. They have also starred together in several films, including 1998’s Hurlyburly and 1997’s She’s So Lovely.” “Marriage ain’t easy, but it’s great most of the time,” Penn told Entertainment Weekly in 1997. “I love Robin. I’ve always loved her.” Apparently not so much.

Walsh-Young Divorce Strangely Ugly

April 28th, 2009 by Hadley | Posted in Community Property, Family Law, Star Divorces | No Comments »

Kate Walsh and her husband of only 14 months, Alex Young, continue to fight over assets in their divorce case. A month before they got married in 2007, they bought a multi-million dollar house together and furnished it. Now Young wants to obtain a detailed account of their assets from their accountant. But the accountants have said he has all he needs and have refused to give him more information. According to TMZ, Young’s lawyer has asked the court to force London & Co, the accounting firm, to hand over the information.

Here’s the kicker: the home is now worth less than when they bought it, and Young walked out on Walsh leaving her with the mortgage and monthly expenses. But he is now insisting on splitting all of the assets in the home, when Walsh has made most of the payments. Walsh’s attorney, Laura Wasser, has requested a trial date to push forward with the divorce however, Young’s attorney believes a settlement will be reached soon. If it doesn’t settle soon this could be a classic case of people spending more on attorney fees than what they have in marital assets.

New Divorce News

April 23rd, 2009 by Hadley | Posted in Divorce Trends, Prenuptial Agreements | No Comments »

The NY Post is reporting Lenny Dykstra’s wife, Terri, has filed for divorce and is asking for joint custody of their youngest child, 13. The couple have been married approximately 23 years. It has not been disclosed which assets she is requesting in the split, but the couple’s mansion is reportedly in foreclosure and they have already lost their jet and Rolls Royce Phantom. The “outspoken” baseball player has been rumored to be in financial trouble for years. As with so much in life, timing is everything.

In other news, Tyrese Gibson and his wife, Norma, are headed back to court in their on-going divorce. The marriage only lasted ten months and at this rate, the divorce may take longer. Tyrese is currently paying over $6,000 a month in support to Norma, but due to a prenuptial agreement, it doesn’t look like Norma will be receiving much else. The agreement states Norma would receive $50,000 a year up to 10 years, but the couple were married less than a year and poor Norma doesn’t look to be getting much more. The agreement also states she will not get any of Tyrese’s assets, which include two production companies, two automobiles, and a home in California, according to TMZ.