Halle Berry Demands Sole Legal Custody of 10-Year-Old Son, Slams Ex Olivier Martinez
Halle Berry asked a court to award her sole legal custody of the 10-year-old son she shares with her ex-husband Olivier Martinez, In Touch has learned.
According to court documents obtained by In Touch, Halle, 57, was back in court days after the judge shut down her emergency motion for a court order instructing Olivier to resume coparenting therapy sessions.
In her new filing, Halle asked the court to switch up the current legal custody arrangement. She wanted full authority to make decisions on their son Maceo's medical decisions and schooling.
In the motion, Halle said she was not perfect but "when it comes to parenting, she has been exemplary, especially during periods of significant conflict between her and" Olivier. She accused her ex of "ignoring, interfering with and/or withholding consent for needed steps to obtain educational and psychoeducational services as well as other interventions for Maceo to meet his educational, psychological and social needs; or alternatively, using soccer activities as leverage for negotiating terms impacting Maceo’s educational and therapeutic needs."
Further, she said he has been, "Inserting Maceo in the middle of [Olivier's] disputes with [Halle] by having Maceo parrot [Olivier']s positions on certain custody issues – which Maceo should not even know about – and then having Maceo tell [Halle] that he (a 10-year-old) and [Olivier] will make the decisions." She said Olivier even attempts to influence Maceo's therapist by spreading false stories about her.
Her filing added, "To summarize, [Olivier] refuses to co-parent or communicate in a child-centered way or make child-centered decisions, which interferes with getting Maceo the help he needs. By refusing to communicate, withholding consent, or deferring decisions, he has effectively delegated to himself sole decision-making authority in violation of the parties’ stipulated judgment."
She asked a court to award her sole legal custody immediately.
In her initial motion, the actress claimed her ex had decided to skip sessions until later this year due to a vacation and spending time with his brother. Halle did not believe Olivier should be allowed to skip sessions and said the therapist did not approve the decision.
Halle and Olivier settled their bitter divorce last year after being unable to hash out a settlement for years. Per their deal, the exes agreed to participate in therapy. Halle also agreed to pay Olivier $8,000 a month in child support.
Halle said when she filed her emergency motion, “I have tried to resolve these issues directly with Olivier without involving our lawyers – Olivier refused my efforts. My lawyer, Marina Beck, tried to resolve these issues directly with Olivier’s now third lawyer for weeks but her efforts were ignored and later refused.”
Olivier's team scoffed at the emergency request. His lawyers claimed, “[Halle] knowingly noticed her ex parte request when she knew Olivier] would be traveling and would be unable to communicate with his counsel to respond to [Halle’s] ex parte request, thus further impeding [Olivier’s] right to be heard.”
The actor's team called out the actress writing, "[Halle] is constantly attempting to harass and strong-arm [Olivier] by forcing him into ‘submission’ using her wealth, and the legal professionals at her disposal,” his team said.
“At the same time, she has refused to agree to provide a fee contribution toward [Olivier’s] legal fees incurred, which does the absolute opposite of leveling the proverbial field.”