California television fans might be interested to find out that Morena Baccarin, who is an actress in the “Gotham” series, was recently ordered to pay her estranged husband a total of $23,042 per month in child and spousal support. The couple are in the middle of a divorce and have a 2-year-old son together.
Ms. Baccarin’s husband, 44-year-old Austin Chick, who is a writer and director, filed a petition for divorce against Ms. Baccarin in July 2015, allegedly because he had learned she had a boyfriend. Three months after he filed, Ms. Baccarin and her “Gotham” co-star, Ben McKenzie, acknowledged that the two are dating and that she is pregnant with his child.
Ms. Baccarin and Mr. Chick have been fighting through their divorce from both coasts. While he had initially agreed to co-parent their son in New York, he moved to Los Angeles after hearing about Ms. Baccarin’s having a boyfriend. The support order includes $2,693 per month in child support and $20,349 in spousal support. The spousal support amount will be required to be paid for the remainder of Mr. Chick’s life unless he marries someone else. The couple is scheduled for another hearing in June 2016.
A spousal support order may be for a limited duration of time or it may be indefinite, depending on the circumstances of the couple. People who believe that spousal support is likely to be ordered in their case may want to talk to a family law attorney, who might be able to help with negotiating a specified amount and a specific duration for the payments. Legal counsel may also be able to negotiate an agreement to give up additional assets during property division in lieu of a spousal support order.
Source: E Online, “Morena Baccarin Ordered to Pay Estranged Husband Austin Chick More Than $22,000 a Month in Child and Spousal Support,” Corinne Heller, Nov. 20, 2015.