After six years, Mandy Moore and Ryan Adams have ended their marriage. They would have liked to do so earlier – they announced their separation well over a year ago – but could not agree on the terms of their divorce.
Their disputes hinged, in part, on Moore’s demands for spousal support, and Adams’s refusal to pay it. Namely, Moore believed she was entitled to monthly payments of $37,000 in exchange for taking care of the couple’s six cats and two dogs.
What’s more, she may have been right.
Mandy Moore’s claims for spousal support
Each state has well-defined provisions for how spousal support (that is, alimony) is awarded. In most jurisdictions, a judge will consider the extent to which a spouse’s earning capacity is impaired as a result of having to perform domestic chores.
Moore has noted that, although she loves her pets, it became overwhelming to look after them – and at times compromised her career. “I was even forced to cancel a prior work engagement because my housekeeper was ill and unable to stay with our pets,” she said.
We should all have such problems. Nevertheless, her claims for support were not without basis, and Adams’s lawyers seem to have recognized this.
Is she getting a fair deal?
A prenuptial agreement would have gone a long way toward smoothing out Moore and Adams’s divorce proceedings. But eventually they reached a settlement. The singer will keep his comic book collection, his pinball machines, a new Porsche and an old Cadillac.
The actress will not receive spousal support, after all; instead, she’s reportedly receiving a $425,000 lump sum and a Prius. It is likely she will also hold on to the dogs and cats.
