As many Kansas couples know, it can take months, even years, to resolve divorce issues when spouses disagree, especially when such issue pertain to money. Superstar actor Robert De Niro is currently entangled in a contentious high asset divorce with his former wife, Grace Hightower. The judge overseeing their case recently scheduled the next proceeding for Valentine’s Day.
De Niro says Hightower signed a prenuptial agreement before they were married. She reportedly agreed that, if they should ever divorce, she would receive no more than $500,000 cash, an apartment worth $6 million and annual alimony payments of $1 million each. Hightower, however, has requested that the court grant her $250 million, which is half of De Niro’s networth.
The judge who scheduled a February 14, 2020 hearing informed the former spouses that they should be prepared to discuss another issue as well, this one involving their 8-year-old daughter. The former couple used a surrogate to have their child. They have reportedly been at odds as to the terms of their future co-parenting plan; however, De Niro is said to have nodded in affirmation when the court asked if it is true that he and the child’s mother have finally agreed to a proposed custody arrangement.
In a high asset divorce, whether in Kansas, Hollywood or elsewhere, child custody, property division and other issues often intersect. Especially when a spouse is having trouble achieving a fair settlement, it is helpful to allow an experienced family law attorney to advocate on one’s behalf in court. One of an attorney’s highest priorities is to protect the financial interests of a client, and when the client is also a concerned parent, the attorney can make sure that proceedings are focused on the well-being of the child in question.
