The world watched as reality television star Kim Kardashian married NBA player Kris Humphries in August of 2011. However, the marriage lasted only seventy-two days and in October of 2011 Kardashian filed for divorce. Surprisingly, the bitter divorce battle has by far outlasted the short length of the marriage. Next month, will mark the one year mark since divorce proceedings began and the case is not likely to settle before then. Kris Humphries announced that he does not intend to settle with Kardashian and the case will likely proceed to trial. Considering the massive amount of witnesses Humphries intends to call (thirty three) and their fame and notoriety, it is no surprise that the trial has been delayed until 2013. The parties have found it difficult to coordinate the schedules of all people involved.
Considering the “iron clad” premarital agreement, the biggest question surrounding this drawn-out divorce is why the couple cannot settle. Kardashian wants her marriage to be over as soon as possible and it is clear that she has moved on with her life. Her and her attorney have no doubt sent over countless settlement proposals, all of which have been rejected. Humphries argues that Kardashian has been hiding information regarding her financial records ever since the beginning of their marriage and he intends to use the law to discover her “secrets.” Humphries also alleges that the entire marriage was a fraud and that Kardashian only entered into it for publicity. Ironically, it was Humphries who skyrocketed from a no-name basketball player to signing a $24 million extension with the Nets.
Humphries specifically claims that Kardashian breached her fiduciary duties. Throughout a marriage and ongoing divorce proceedings, each spouse has the ongoing duty to disclose his or her assets and debts. Under California Family Code section 1101, “a spouse has a claim against the other spouse for any breach of the fiduciary duty that results in impairment to the claimant spouse’s present undivided one-half interest in the community estate.” Humphries is “convinced” that Kardashian is hiding how much she made off of their wedding and during their seventy-two day marriage. He will have to convince a court and also show that his interest in that money was impaired in order to gain any recourse.
In the documents filed with the court, Humphries also states “a spouse may not make a gift of community personal property, or dispose of community personal property for less than fair and reasonable value, without the written consent of the other spouse.” While it is true that each spouse has equal management rights of community property, management is not equal to gifting. If Kardashian gifted away community property in order to “hide” it from Humphries, he may have a claim to be reimbursed for that amount. Kardashian announced that she plans on asking the court to order Humphries to pay her attorney fees. She alleges that all of this legal action is not founded on the law and facts but rather is an abuse of the divorce courts. If she is successful, Humphries may receive a bill for over $250,000 from Kardashian’s attorney.
Please contact us if you are considering a divorce from your spouse, a legal separation, or have questions regarding child custody and visitation. Nancy J. Bickford is the only attorney in San Diego County representing clients in divorces, who is a Certified Family Law Specialist (CFLS) and who is actively licensed as a Certified Public Accountant (CPA). Don’t settle for less when determining your rights. Call 858-793-8884 in Del Mar, Carmel Valley, North County or San Diego.