Puddle of Mudd singer Wes Scantlin was so happy to finally end his marriage ... he signed the divorce docs with not one, but TWO smiley faces!
TMZ has learned ... Wes' 4-year marriage to a hot blond chick named Jessica is one step closer to being terminated ... with the rocker agreeing to fork over $2,500 per month in alimony.
Jessica originally wanted the court to toss out their pre-nup so she could reap half of Scantlin's fortune ... but she ultimately withdrew her request after the two sides came to an agreement about how they will divide the assets.
Obviously Wes was happy with the outcome -- as evidenced by the smiley faces.
Jessica's lawyer, Brian Kramer, tells TMZ, "It’s most definitely the first time in all my years of doing this work that I’ve have had an opposing party sign with a smiley face on a divorce decree imposing maximum spousal support.
He adds, "It’s certainly a refreshing change to see an artist who is cheerful about honoring such an obligation instead of treating it like it were the end of the world."
Source: www.tmz.com
Tom Cruise Using Same Powerhouse Attorney Used for Nicole Kidman Divorce - ABC News
Tom Cruise took the lead in filing his first two divorces.
This time the shoe is on the other foot, but he will have a familiar face at his side. Dennis Wasser, the Los Angeles based powerhouse divorce attorney who represented Cruise in his divorce with actress Nicole Kidman, will represent the actor against Katie Holmes in the celebrity divorce bombshell of the year.
A source familiar with the actor confirmed Wasser has taken the case, adding that a yet to be chosen New York attorney will also join the Cruise legal team.
When asked if Cruise would try to move the case from New York to California the source would only say that "the approach will focus on the best interests of the child."
Some legal analysts have said that Holmes' decision to file for divorce in New York may give her an advantage in her effort to gain sole custody versus joint custody and provide more privacy since New York seals divorce filings that are often available in Calfornia.
California divorce attorney Michael Kelly told the Associated Press that Holmes' East Coast filing "a tactical move" that signifies "there will be an attempt to gain an advantage."
New York's comparative-fault divorce laws could be advantageous for Holmes, he said. The couple lived in Los Angeles.
But this divorce battle has just begun.
With Wasser fighting for Cruise and Holmes is supported by Jonathan Wolfe and mega divorce attorney Allan Mayefsky, who represented Christie Brinkley in her divorce battle with Peter Cook.
Cruise's publicist said the actor was "deeply saddened" by Katie Holmes' divorce filing last week, and a source close to the "Rock of Ages" star told ABC News that Holmes' decision came as a "complete surprise."
33 The Magic Number For Cruise?
The previous times Cruise has gotten divorced, he was in control. Curiously all of Cruise's marriages ended when his ex-wives were 33 years old.
Cruise filed for divorce from his second wife, Nicole Kidman, in February 2001 sometime after she miscarried their baby according to Kidman (they had previously adopted two children). He dropped the bomb less than two months after they renewed their vows on their 10-year-anniversary, Christmas Eve 2000.
PHOTOS: Tom and Katie Before the Split
Kidman broke down on Oprah Winfrey's talk show in May 2001, calling the situation a "nightmare."
"I think that divorce is hard for anyone. It's a nightmare, it just is, and you can pretend you're fine," she said. "And days you're great [and] days you're not great."
In a written response to a divorce petition filed by Cruise on the grounds of irreconcilable differences, Kidman said she was stunned when he told her that he no longer wanted to be married, and allegedly begged him to stay and seek marriage counseling. He refused and left for good, according to her response.
When asked by Winfrey whether she thought she would always be married, Kidman timidly replied, "Yeah."
"I've had a blessed life," she said. "I've always thought [if] something bad is going to happen, something bad is going to happen.
But then something really bad happened. A number of really bad things happened. You go, 'I'm dealing with it. I'm stronger than I thought.'"
Kidman is now happily married to country singer Keith Urban. They have two children together.
Source: abcnews.go.com
Is This a New Trend - A June Spike in Divorce Enquiries? - huffingtonpost.co.uk
While traditionally we have been used to reports of spikes in divorce enquiries in January and September, over the last couple of years my colleagues and I at Prolegal have seen the number of enquires for divorce increase in June.
Could it be that for some couples the prospect of the school holidays precipitates divorce? That the mere thought of spending their summer holiday together is enough to send them over the edge and going running towards the divorce courts?
In the past divorce spikes have come after established holiday periods - due to the strain of spending family time together or to couples hanging on in there until after holiday periods to avoid upsetting their families.
Yet, people now seem to be taking the view that two weeks spent with their partner, locked together in a different environment with no distractions, could be problematic.
Statistics suggest the recession may be putting unnaturally high pressure on relationships.
According to the Office for National Statistics, at the end of 2011, the divorce rate was up 5%, from 113,949 to 119,589, after years of decline.
Without the comfort blanket of financial security couples are left with the bare bones of what may not always be a pretty sight.
In the modern world, the days of stay-at-home mothers (or fathers) is becoming more unaffordable.
Levels of personal debt are at an all-time high, the cost of mortgage borrowing still represents a huge burden (as although interest rates are at an historic low, many couples remain in fixed rate mortgages or have reverted to standard variable rates which have recently been increased by some lenders) and bonus payments have fundamentally changed.
So we operate in a society where economic reality dictates that both parties have to go to work.
And for some couples I would suggest the fact that they are both so busy and rarely see one another, actually papers over the cracks in their relationship. This all falls away at holiday time and there is no escape from the realisation that actually they no longer wish to spend "quality time" together.
We live in a throwaway society. When our television breaks down we make no effort to have it fixed, we just throw it out and start again. Although I would like to think that people view their relationships a little differently, I fear that for many this is not the case. The average length of a marriage in this country is 11 years - just one year more than the guarantee on the Miele washing machine you bought when you got married!
Jonathan West is head of family law at Prolegal
Follow Jonathan West on Twitter: www.twitter.com/jonathanwest3
Source: www.huffingtonpost.co.uk
Divorce as per Islamic laws and Indian Muslims - Meri News
THERE ARE various kinds of divorce mechanisms as practiced by Muslims all over the globe. The most dominant and prevalent among them is divorce by husband which has three forms: talaaq, ila and zihar. The other is by mutual consent and it has two forms: khula and mubarat. The third one among them is divorce proceeding initiated by wife and it has two forms: talaaq-i-tafweez and lian.
Talaaq means dissolution of marriage by husband using right words. Among the Sunnis, talaaq may be express, contingent, constructive or even delegated. The Shia law recognizes only the express and delegated form of talaaq. A Muslim male of sound mind who has attained puberty can take talaaq. According to Sunni law, a talaaq may be oral or in writing, whereas as per Shia law, the talaaq must be pronounced orally except when husband is unable to speak. Shias require two witnesses whereas Sunnis require none. In ila, husband takes the oath not to have sexual intercourse with his wife and if he keeps his words for the following four months, the marriage dissolves irrevocably.
In zihar, the husband compares his wife with a woman with whom he can’t keep relationship, such as, mother or sister. After such a comparison, he expresses the wish for divorce and does not cohabit with his wife for the following four months. The divorce follows.
Khula is a mechanism by which couple arrives at agreement to divorce each other in lieu of compensation paid by the wife to her husband out of her property. If and when the husband gives the consent it results in divorce. In mubarat, both the husband and the wife are happy to get rid of each other. For Sunnis use of mubarat option implies end of all obligations and rights. For Shias the reason for using mubarat should be irreconcilable differences.
In Talaaq-i-tafweez or in delegated divorce, the husband delegates his power of pronouncing divorce to his wife or any other person. In lian, if the husband levels false charges of unchaste and adulterous behavior on his wife, the wife is free to seek divorce. There is another way by which Muslim females in India can seek divorce and that is through dissolution of Muslim Marriage Act 1939.
According to this act, a female married as per Islamic law can seek divorce with her husband if the whereabouts of her husband have been unknown for a period of four years or if the husband has neglected her maintenance for the past two years or if the husband has been sentenced to imprisonment for a period of seven years or more or if the husband has failed to perform, without reason, his marital obligations, or if the husband was impotent at the time of marriage and still is or if the husband has been insane for two years or if the wife was given in marriage by her parent or guardian before she was fifteen or if the husband treats her with cruelty.
Islamic laws give power bigger than those of sovereigns to males in marital matters. The fact is that as per Sharia, a wife can’t divorce her husband at her own wish. She requires the consent of her husband to do so. In India, which is a secular country constitutionally and dominated by Hindus demographically, Muslims enjoy limited application of Sharia laws in the form of Muslim personal laws.
As per Sharia the husband is not liable to pay maintenance to his divorcee once the period of iddat, which is usually three month long, ends. The fact is though Indian courts meekly maintain the right of divorced Muslim females to get alimony in any form at least till she is not remarried and also the right to get money for raising minor children, the reality is that after the Shah Bano fiasco, in which the ruling of the apex court was overruled by amending the laws of the Parliament, Muslim males are virtually immune from such orders largely.
In order to understand this world comprehensively, the understanding of both relativistic and absolute aspects of life is essential. Koran is the Final Testament as Prophet Mohammad is the last Prophet of Islam. Equally true is the fact that Muslims consider Sharia to be universal law though interpretations can change with time and Islamic laws are therefore, not fully immutable. But for Muslims, it matters a lot whether they are majority or minority of a nation and that of a society.
India is multi-religious, multi-lingual, multi-ethnic society: as diverse and pluralistic as one can imagine. Giving a preferred and special treatment to any of the constituents promotes segmentation and continuity of status quo for many and resistance to change and opposition to change in the required directions for many others. The most important thing is that time has changed and it has changed forever. The consciousness and technology has crossed a threshold mark that requires urgent reinterpretation of all that belong to the past within acceptable social norms. Of course, it is difficult for some to change without all changing and the dominance of the West implies that it will always try to convert the world to its way of life and that promotes reactionary tendencies among the non-Westerners.
The equally important argument is that majority of Indian Muslims are as ardent believers of Islam as subjected to their evolutions and in their local contexts as Saudis and Iranians are and therefore it becomes difficult for even Indian Muslims to change without all Muslims changing.
Saudi Arabia and Iran are nations not ready to change but India is. But it is always a question of statistics; the fact is that the Saudis have enough orthodox elements within their society that Saudi Arabia will always resist the change. The same is not true for Indian Muslims; some of them being the most liberals but again here the statistics and distributions count.
While the majority up to 85% to 90% can stick to traditional interpretation of Islamic texts as permissible and as possible in India, the remainder can move to modernity. Indian Muslims should have the choice to be governed by mainstream laws as applicable to general population or to be governed by personal laws. The liberalism is required by all constituents of Indian society to adjust to the changing consciousness and technologies, maximally from Hindus. But as a compulsion of time the same is required from Indian Muslims though not to the equal extent.
The interpretation of laws could be subjective, conditional and more importantly class and caste oriented. Inequality is the law of India. If some of the Muslims opt for general laws as applied to Hindus they can get additional social benefits and caste promotion by Hindus even though they may not require this. Both liberal and orthodox Muslims are required for keeping the balance within Indian society and making a posture to the outside world. For this reason the Muslim clergy should not mind another Shah Bano because its effect would not be contagious. For majority of Muslims anyway the laws would be their own laws. But liberalism can be soothing for many Muslims and for the Indian society.
Source: www.merinews.com
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