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Kevin Costner and Ex Christine Battle Over Child Support For Their Three Kids
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Kevin Costner was in court Thursday with his estranged wife Christine Baumgartner, who reportedly shed tears during the child-support hearing in Santa Barbara, Calif.
Baumgartner is requesting more than $160,000 per month in child support for their three children, which her attorney, John Rydell, said was lower than her initial request after additional forensic accounting, per reports. According to an earlier legal filing from Baumgartner, Costner had an annual cash flow of more than $19 million available for child support, for which the guideline child support payment would have been just over $175,000 per month.
The “Yellowstone” star’s lawyers proposed $60,000 per month.
Baumgartner, 49, shares 50/50 custody with Costner, 68, of their three children: sons Cayden, 16, and Hayes, 14, and daughter Grace, 13. She filed for divorce in May after 18 years of marriage, and left the family’s California beachfront home.
In court, Rydell argued that the children are entitled to live a comparable lifestyle in each parent’s custody, and that a luxurious lifestyle is “in their DNA at this point.”
Because the children are “connected” to the ocean with a “surf garage” at home, and because they enjoy flying private for luxury vacations with their father, Baumgartner and her lawyer argued they should be able to have those same things while living with her.
“While children have the right to receive support from both parents; the amount of child support that Christine Baumgartner is requesting of Kevin Costner appears like an end run around the prenuptial agreement to support her own lifestyle,” said attorney Shawna Woods, managing partner at the Atlanta Divorce Law Group, who is not involved in the case.
Baumgartner was reportedly entitled to $1.5 million under the prenuptial agreement, but challenged it, arguing that Costner’s net worth grew considerably during the course of their marriage.
“One cannot expect to maintain the same lifestyle post-divorce as during the marriage. The Costner children may maintain their same lifestyle when they are with their father; however, that does not mean that the court requires for the children to maintain that same lifestyle while they are with their mother,” Woods said.
“It’s not uncommon for divorcing parents to be concerned about their children ‘picking sides’ or feeling like one parent has an advantage over the other because of the lifestyle the other family member brings. The question here is, how much of a luxury lifestyle is needed?” said TV personality and pop culture expert Brian Balthazar.
“It’s hard to ignore the unfortunate optics of this scenario. When the median income of the American household is barely more than $70,000 dollars a year, it’s not a great look when a high profile parent — particularly with a celebrity connection — thinks nearly three times that amount a month is necessary for the well-being of the children,” Balthazar said. “The PR optics are not great to say the least.”
But the seemingly high child support request may just be her legal team’s negotiating tactic, according to strategic communications consultant Robbie Vorhaus, founder and CEO of Vorhaus Communications, Inc.
“Having advised celebrities for 30 years, this is her lawyer’s strategy. Ask for $200k monthly, settle on $150k monthly with some significant assets, and you’ve got a good life. Just watch,” Vorhaus said. “When this is over, Costner will be so tired and worn down, he’ll pay anything.”
TMX contributed to this article.
