Filing For Divorce -- Celebrity Style

The recent split between Desperate Housewives star Eva Longoria and her professional

basketball playing beau, Tony Parker, has celebrity gossip watchers obsessed with the intricacies of divorce law. And thanks to the celebrity gossip site TMZ, we have all the nitty-gritty details.

Yet, whatever the reason for the end of their relationship, the Longoria-Parker divorce offers us an opportunity to think about how some of these same legal issues might affect people in divorce cases in Minnesota.

Court records show that Longoria has filed for divorce in California. Parker has filed for divorce in Texas. How can both parties file for divorce in different states at the same time? Divorce jurisdiction depends on where you live. In many states, a person can file for divorce if they have lived in that state for the past six months. This is exactly what happened in the Longoria-Parker case. Longoria was able to file for divorce in California because she is a resident of California. Parker was able to file for divorce in Texas because he is a resident of Texas.

The same rules apply to a person getting divorced in Minnesota. In order to get divorced here, you must have lived in Minnesota for the past six months. If your spouse has resided elsewhere during that time (just like the Longoria-Parker case) things can get really complicated really fast. It is possible that each state could lack jurisdiction over the nonresident spouse (the spouse who does not live in the state) making it difficult, if not impossible, to divide marital property.

In the Longoria-Parker case, I don't suspect jurisdiction will remain disputed for long. Both of them have probably spent enough time in the other's state for the court to have jurisdiction. More importantly, though, it is probably in their best interests to agree on a state in order to resolve the divorce. Each has enough money and assets to support themselves going forward. A battle over jurisdiction would only serve to feed the tabloid monster.

In non-celebrity cases, though, this kind of jurisdictional stand-off can cause real problems. It might not be in the non-resident spouse's best interest to agree to jurisdiction. A particular state may have different rules regarding division of marital property or the award of spousal maintenance. Agreeing to jurisdiction may get the case resolved, but it may come at a high price.

The fact that different states have different rules is exactly why Parker (who filed second) is alleged to have filed for divorce in Texas. According to TMZ, Parker filed for divorce in Texas because Longoria's California attorney "checked the box that reserved (Longoria's) right to collect spousal support - something that (TMZ says was) inconsistent with their prenup." If it turns out that Longoria does intend to argue for spousal support (which is highly speculative at this time) the location of the divorce could impact the outcome of the case. The L.A. Times has reported that Texas law prohibits a spouse from being awarded spousal maintenance if the parties have not been married for at least ten years. California law contains no such prohibition. Thus, any spousal support claim by Longoria would be allowed in California but not in Texas.

We will have to wait to see what happens with the issue of jurisdiction in their divorce. In case you're wondering, Minnesota law more closely resembles California than Texas on the timing of spousal maintenance.

by: Robert Gadtke

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