Complicating the disagreement is discrepancies found in post-nuptial agreements signed by the couple. The couple signed 6 copies of a marital contract that divided the assets of Jamie and Frank between them. Frank said that drawing up the agreement was Jamie's idea to protect their properties from business creditors. Jamie has said that she did not mean for the agreement to determine how the couple's property would be divided in the event of a divorce.
]]> The agreement said that Jamie was the owner of the couple's properties and homes and Frank was the owner of the couple's business assets. Complicating things, half of the copies of the agreement listed Frank as the sole owner of the Dodgers and half did not list the Dodgers as an asset.Frank testified that the discrepancy was an error by his attorney who discovered the error shortly after the couple signed the documents. Frank said that the attorney brought the discrepancy to his attention and Frank reacted to it as an "obvious mistake." The attorney then added a document that said the Dodgers belonged to Frank.
Jamie wants the agreement to be declared invalid by the court and the couple's property to be split 50/50 under California's community property law. Frank McCourt wants the post-nuptial agreement to be upheld by the court.
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Frank McCourt denies changing property documents (Los Angeles Times)
]]>The 11-day trial to determine the ownership of the Dodgers is now underway with both sides presenting their viewpoints on the matter. At the center of the trial is whether a 2004 post-nuptial agreement should be invalidated or allowed to stand. The agreement assigns ownership of the couple's businesses and assets to Frank, while assigning property ownership to Jamie.
]]> Jamie's attorneys have claimed in court that their client was duped into signing away her part-ownership of the Dodgers. They claim that the document is deceitful. Frank McCourt testified on Tuesday that the agreement was Jamie's idea in order to provide her creditor protection. He will continue his testimony on Wednesday.Jamie filed for divorce last October after a 30-year marriage.
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Frank McCourt to resume testimony in trial that could decide LA Dodgers ownership (Los Angeles Times)
]]>As reported in an earlier post, Los Angeles County sheriff's detectives recently announced that they are wrapping up their initial investigation into Grigorieva's allegations that Gibson committed an act of domestic violence against her and endangered their child last January. Investigators will soon present their evidence to prosecutors, who will then decide whether to pursue charges.
]]> Investigators were also looking into counter-charges by Gibson that Grigorieva had tried to extort him. Grigorieva made secret recordings of phone arguments between the couple during the height of their custody battle and break-up. The tapes featured Gibson yelling racial slurs and verbally abusing Grigorieva as well as seemingly admitting to hitting her while she was holding her child.Investigators are looking into how the tapes, which were admitted into the confidential family court proceedings, made their way onto the online tabloid, Radar Online. They are also looking into whether Grigorieva used the tapes to try to get something from Gibson. Grigorieva denies Gibson's extortion allegations.
Source:
Mel Gibson's ex-girlfriend appears at closed child custody hearing in Los Angeles (Los Angeles Times)
]]>The financial terms of the marriage have not been reported in the media, but they have been speculated upon. In Florida, divorce proceedings become part of the public record, but can remain confidential if the divorcing couple agrees to a private settlement. It has been reported that Nordegren is believed to have signed a prenuptial agreement before the couple married. The divorce would certainly be classified as high-asset as Woods has been reported to be worth $1 billion by Fortune Magazine.
]]> According to Golf.com, Woods did not agree with that number, but he has earned at least $93 million in winnings in his 14 years as a professional golfer, and he will reportedly earn at least $70 million this year.Nordegren and Woods met in 2001 and married in 2004. After Woods was in a bizarre car accident last Thanksgiving, reports of his infidelities surfaced and were reported widely by news organizations around the world, which prompted the divorce.
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]]>Since then, Richardson has seen his son twice for a total of five hours. Complicating the issue, his ex-wife told authorities upon her arrival in Mexico that Richardson had threatened to kill her. Since then, he has been cleared by U.S. authorities of domestic violence, but he has only been allowed court-supervised visits with his son in Mexico.
]]> Richardson has been trying with increasing urgency to have his son returned to the U.S. by authorities in Mexico and the U.S., recently appealing to Rep. Duncan Hunter, Sen. Diane Feinstein, and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton for help with his case.International parental child abduction is a difficult issue and takes time to resolve. According to a story by 10News.com, Mexico has the highest rate of parental child abductions from the U.S. The State Department reported that in 2008, there were 316 cases of children being abducted by parents and taken to Mexico; 92 have since been returned to the U.S.
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Local Father Calls On Mexico To Return Kidnapped Son (10News.com)
]]>Jamie's attorneys say that the document they found is the original document from 2004 and shows Jamie owns half the team. They have filed a motion in Los Angeles Superior Court to have the document admitted as evidence in the upcoming hearing. They say that the similar document currently admitted in court has an exhibit improperly attached that designates Frank McCourt as the sole owner. Jamie's attorneys say that forensic analysis showed that the document they recently found, sans exhibit, is the true document.
]]> Frank McCourt's attorneys have downplayed the discovery of the new document, saying that a judge will have to interpret the documents and evidence. They also say that other documents in their possession prove Frank is the sole owner of the Dodgers.The ex-couple has been fighting an intense legal battle since Jamie filed for divorce last October. The couple has been fighting over how to divide their assets, including several properties and the Los Angeles Dodgers.
Usually property is divided equally between divorcing couples in California, but Jamie and Frank McCourt had drawn up agreements regarding how to divide property in the event of a divorce. At the center of the battle is how to interpret those documents and whether the agreements are valid.
Source:
Lawyers say newly found agreement shows Jamie McCourt owns half of Los Angeles Dodgers (Los Angeles Times)
]]>According to a recent article in the Los Angeles Times, the couple cannot agree on whether Jamie should receive income based on how much the team is worth now versus how much it could be worth in the future. Jamie and her team of attorneys are seeking to give her a percentage interest in the team. Frank and his attorneys worry that that will give Jamie a say in team business decisions, which Frank does not want to share with his future wife.
]]> Frank and the attorneys representing him have said that he wants to do what is right by the couple's four sons and wants to do what is right in their eyes for their mother. He says that he wants to move on, but at the same time, has been unable to come to an agreement with his ex-wife.The court will look at a pre-nuptial agreement between the couple that lays out division of their assets, including properties and business interests. Frank has argued that the agreement clearly says that he will have control of the businesses and Jamie ownership of their properties in the event of a divorce, but Jamie wants the agreement invalidated.
No matter what the court decides during the scheduled trial, the dispute over the ex-couple's finances will unlikely end. Whoever loses will likely launch an appeals process that could last years. It has also been speculated that, whether Frank wins or loses the team, he might have to sell the team in order to pay off Jamie, such as former San Diego Padres owner John Moores did during his high-profile divorce.
Source:
Team's worth is the sticking point in McCourts' divorce (Los Angeles Times)
]]>Gibson was accused of domestic violence by his ex-girlfriend, Oksana Grigorieva, in connection with an incident earlier this year. Investigators are also looking into counter-charges that Grigorieva or someone close to her attempted to extort Gibson in order to keep private the domestic violence allegations.
Grigorieva secretly recorded private phone arguments between the couple while the couple was in the middle of a contentious custody dispute over their infant daughter. It has been reported that Gibson has accused Grigorieva of attempting to extort him in exchange for keeping the recordings private.
]]> The recordings made their way onto the Internet where they have been heard around the world. The tapes feature Gibson using offensive language and seemingly admitting to hitting Grigorieva while she was holding their child. Grigorieva has publicly denied attempting to extort Gibson. She has said that she has been the victim of not only domestic violence, but a smear campaign designed to undermine her serious allegations of abuse.Source:
Mel Gibson domestic violence case going to prosecutors in two weeks (Los Angeles Times)
]]>A lawsuit was brought against Prop 8 by two gay California couples. California Attorney General Jerry Brown and Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger were also named as defendants in the case, but they declined to support Prop 8 during the trial. Defending Prop 8 was the group that had put the measure on the ballot, Protect Marriage.
]]> According to the Los Angeles Times, Protect Marriage argued that same-sex marriage went against the traditional and historical purpose of marriage and threatened the institution of heterosexual marriage. The plaintiffs, represented by former U.S. Solicitor General Theodore Olson and David Boies, argued that these claims were not sufficient to discriminate against same-sex couples.Both sides had already said that they would appeal the Judge's decision if he ruled against them. The next stop for this case will be the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco. The historical case is expected to eventually end up before the U.S. Supreme Court.
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Report: Judge Rules Prop 8 Unconstitutional (Los Angeles Times)
]]>In exchange for Sheen's guilty plea, prosecutors dropped the more serious charges of felony menacing and criminal mischief. Sheen was sentenced to 30 days in a California rehabilitation facility, 30 days of probation, and 36 hours of anger management classes. Sheen's attorney said that his client may be eligible to be credited for time already served since he has spent over three months already this year at California's Promises Treatment Center.
]]> According to the Los Angeles Times, Sheen told the courtroom that he was grateful for the resolution to the case and looking forward to complying with the court's order and moving on with his life. Sheen and Mueller have both gone through alcohol-abuse treatment programs since the domestic violence incident and have reportedly been sober for several months. The couple has also reconciled and Mueller supports the plea agreement.Source:
Charlie Sheen pleads guilty in Aspen domestic abuse case with wife, gets 30 days in rehab (Los Angeles Times)
]]>According to the Los Angeles Times, Grigorieva allegedly sought a multi-million dollar payout when the two broke up. Gibson claims that Grigorieva tried to extort him through threatening to make public accusations of domestic violence and the tapes that she secretly recorded of their heated arguments during the height of their custody dispute over their daughter.
]]> The tapes were submitted into evidence during confidential family court proceedings, but the tapes found their way onto the tabloid website, Radar Online, where they have been listened to around the world. Of much interest to investigators is how and why the tapes made it online.Grigorieva claims that Gibson's extortion accusations are false. She claims that she is fighting for her child and wants what is best for her. Los Angeles Sheriff's officials are investigating her claims that Gibson hit her and endangered their child during an incident of domestic violence in January. In the domestic violence investigation, they are examining medical records and text and e-mail messages, as well as witness accounts.
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]]>Sunny's mom is James' ex-wife, ex-porn star Janine Lindemulder. Lindemulder has had drug problems and problems with the law and was recently released from a halfway house. The judge ruled that Lindemulder will have legal custody with child visitation rights, while James will have physical custody. Lindemulder will be able to see Sunny once a month in California and will share summer and holiday breaks with James. The judge ruled that Lindemulder was off drugs, but was still in a fragile state where she might make poor decisions.
]]> Lindemulder broke down in court when the decision was announced that Sunny could move to Texas, but after court she told reporters that it it would be good for her daughter. She has said that Sunny loves Sandra Bullock's adopted baby boy, Louis, and misses him. She says that Sunny is excited to move to Texas and that Sandra and Jesse are good parents.Sandra Bullock and Jesse James' divorce was recently finalized after widespread media reports of James' infidelities. Bullock has since moved to Austin with her adopted son. Now it seems she will be near her stepchildren that she cared for as her own for the five years she was married to James.
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Judge: Jesse James Can Move Sunny to Texas - Near Sandra Bullock (US Magazine)
]]>Grigorieva secretly recorded phone arguments between herself and Gibson while they were in the midst of a volatile break-up and custody dispute. The couple has an infant daughter and have been fighting for custody rights of the child. The secret recordings were involved in closed-door court hearings for the custody dispute. The tapes were also obtained by the website Radar Online and made public. On the tapes, Gibson can be heard using derogatory terms for women and racial slurs. He also seems to admit to hitting Grigorieva while she was holding their daughter.
]]> Legal experts have questioned whether the tapes would be allowed in the event of a criminal trial for domestic violence. In California law, both parties to be recorded in a phone conversation must give their consent in order to make the recording legal. Since Grigorieva recorded the tapes without Gibson's knowledge or permission, it is likely they could not be used as evidence. It is also possible that Grigorieva committed a crime by recording them.Source:
Detectives examining alleged extortion attempt by Mel Gibson's ex-girlfriend (Los Angeles Times)
]]>When Doss began the adoption process, she was told by Vanessa's birth mother that she had become pregnant with Vanessa after a one-night stand. She had other children with Mills, but told Doss he was not the father of Vanessa. Later, genetic tests proved that Mills was the biological father. Vanessa's mother and Mills had a turbulent relationship, and Mills served 18 years in an Ohio prison for domestic violence. Mills has had his driver's license suspended for failure to pay child support.
]]> An Orange County judge relinquished jurisdiction over the child custody case and an Ohio judge ordered Vanessa to be returned to Ohio on Friday. She was to be placed in foster care until the case was resolved. Attorneys representing Mills and Doss will both have turns to respond to the court's decision and to each other. Both sides have been asked to explain to the court how they believe Vanessa's best interests will be served.Source:
Court: Adopted child can stay in California (Orange County Register)
]]>The former couple have an 8-month-old daughter. At the time of Grigorieva's taping of the arguments they were locked in a contentious child custody dispute over the infant. Gibson is currently under investigation for the domestic violence allegations by the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department. Sheriff's officials say that they will consider the tapes as potential evidence in their investigation. At the conclusion of their investigation, they will turn their findings over to the Los Angeles County District Attorney's office, which will decide whether to pursue charges.
]]> A prior tape featured Gibson using racial slurs and foul language during which he told the mother of his daughter that it would be her fault if she were raped because of the way she dressed and carried herself. Neither Gibson nor his attorneys or public representatives have challenged the authenticity of the tapes. Gibson and his representatives have not commented on the tapes. Most of his friends and colleagues have also remained silent and some in Hollywood have questioned whether he will work again on mainstream film projects as a result of the latest scandal.
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Latest Gibson tape mentions alleged hitting of mother of his 8-month-old daughter (The Los Angeles Times)
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