Reality TV star Kim Kardashian officially became single again on Wednesday, after a Los Angeles judge finalized her divorce from rapper Ye, whom she married in 2014.
Kardashian appeared before the court virtually but Ye, formerly known as Kanye West, was represented only by his lawyer, who brought no objection to the end of the marriage.
Ye had publicly fought the separation, including with social media posts imploring Kardashian to reconcile.
Kardashian filed for divorce last year after months of press reports about marital strife and as Ye battled with mental health issues.
“I very much desire to be divorced,” Kardashian wrote in a declaration filed to the court last week.
“I have asked Kanye to keep our divorce private, but he has not done so,” added the 41-year-old megastar.
“I believe that the court terminating our marital status will help Kanye to accept that our marital relationship is over and to move forward on a better path which will assist us in peacefully co-parenting our children.”
The couple have four children: eight-year-old daughter North, son Saint, six, daughter Chicago, four, and two-year-old son Psalm.
The pair, who began dating in 2012 and married in a lavish ceremony in Italy two years later, rapidly became one of the world’s most instantly recognizable couples.
But their union ran into trouble with reports of bizarre outbursts from Ye, 44, who suffers from bipolar disorder.
- A judge declared Kardashian, 41, single in a court hearing on Wednesday
- The ruling means that her ex West, 44, is also legally single
- Kardashian - wearing a black blouse and her hair swept back - appeared via video today at a court in downtown LA; West, 44, did not appear
- West tried to slow down the case by challenging their prenuptial agreement
- Judge Steve Cochran granted Kim's request to have her maiden name restored
The legal action is called bifurcation, which West opposed.
Kardashian - wearing a black blouse and her hair swept back - appeared via video today at a court in downtown LA.
West, 44, did not appear in person nor via video.
Judge Steve Cochran granted her request to have her maiden name restored, and he denied West's motion to prevent Kardashian from transferring assets out of trusts set up during the marriage.
The feuding couple, both billionaires, had their high powered attorneys in court Wednesday - Laura Wasser for Kardashian and Samantha Spector for West. Spector was only appointed last night after West fired his previous lawyer.
Judge Cochran began today's hearing by asking Kardashian how her four children by the hip hop star and producer - North, 8, Saint, 6, Chicago, 4 and Psalm 2 - are doing.
'Everybody is doing OK,' she responded.
Asked by the judge if she was 'showering her children with affection,' she replied, 'Absolutely.'
She added, 'We're having so much fun.'
After asking Kardashian to raise her right hand to be sworn in, Judge Cochran asked her a series of five questions:
Is everything true in your petition? 'Yes,' she replied.
Did you live in Los Angeles at least six months prior to filing for divorce? 'Yes.'
Is your marriage irretrievably broken? 'Yes.'
Will counseling save your marriage? 'No.'
Is it your desire to be granted single status? 'Yes.'
With a grin, the judge told Kim it was his practice to see photos of children involved in cases before his court.
But in this case, he added, he did not ask to see pictures, 'to protect the children's privacy. Is that OK with you?
'Yes your honor, thank you,' she responded with a smile.
Wasser told the court that she 'didn't believe there would be any disagreements' between the celebrity couple over custody of their kids.
But she and West's attorney, Spector, hit roadblocks on two other issues.
The first was Kanye request to prevent Kim from transferring assets out of any trust - a request Kim has fired back at due to their existing prenup, which already keeps their trusts and assets separate.
Wasser told the court today that Kim 'uses these trusts for her business and to freeze her assets would…create problems. It would prevent her from doing business.'
The second point of dispute was West's request for Kim to 'waive marital privilege.' Waiving marital privilege would means all of their communication would no longer be private and instead would be part of the court record.
Wasser branded the request 'unprecedented' and accused West of trying 'to prevent or make it difficult for Ms. Kardashian to remarry' in the future.
Judge Cochran denied West's attempt to stop Kardashian from taking money out of her trusts and he also denied the rapper's request for her to waive marital privilege, telling the court, 'The law provides no support for that condition.'
The judge scheduled August 5 for a status and pretrial hearing to hear arguments from both sides about financial and child custody issues still to be settled. Kardashian's new legal status means that West is also legally single, and a source close to the rapper claimed that he also wants the divorce to proceed, though that doesn't align with his delay tactics in court or his public statements about trying to get his wife back ,
Demands: The judge rejected his request that Kim not transfer assets held in trusts and that she waive the right to have a spouse avoid testifying about conversations with her; seen in 2020
She filed for divorce in February 2021 and the couple initially seemed to be on the same page, but in recent weeks West has taken to attacking her boyfriend Pete Davidson on social media.
He has also repeatedly posted text conversations that appear to be with his estranged wife, including one conversation in which she appeared to write, 'Why can't you keep any of our conversations private ???'
'Cause I got a text from my favorite person in the world,' he allegedly replied. 'I'm your number one fan. Why wouldn't I tell everyone!!!!'
Kardashian doesn't appear to have any desire to slow down her divorce, but her ex has shared multiple times in public that he hopes to win her back.
West's ex previously filed documents claiming that his recent social media posts have been riddled with 'misinformation,' and she claimed their attacks on her and her boyfriend Pete Davidson have caused her 'emotional distress.'
'I believe that the court terminating our marital status will help Kanye to accept that our marital relationship is over and to move forward on a better path which will assist us in peacefully co-parenting our children,' Kardashian wrote in documents filed on February 23, according to Rolling Stone
West's attorneys said Kardashian would need to prove he had personally written the posts, though they didn't appear to explicitly deny that he had written them in their own filings.
'Kim claims she read something online allegedly by Kanye and characterizes the posts in her declaration as misinformation. The social media posts are not attached to the declaration. Kim needed to offer the social media posts into evidence, and show that the posts were written by Kanye,' his lawyers wrote, adding that Kardashian's claims amount to 'double hearsay..
