A judge has declared Kim Kardashian legally single. In a Wednesday hearing, Kardashian appeared over video and Ye, née Kanye West, did not attend. There were conditions that Ye’s team asked for, per TMZ—one granted, two denied—that are in the weeds of legalese, but the overall takeaway is that they are legally single and they’ll hash out custody and asset divisions at a later date.
Ye is currently on divorce lawyer number four, Samantha Spector, after firing number three, Chris Melcher, on the eve of this hearing. You may recall Spector from the divorce battle between Nicole Young and Dr. Dre. She represented Young, while Dr. Dre retained the heavyweight Laura Wasser (he was ordered to find a new lawyer at a certain point in the proceedings, and retained Brad Pitt’s divorce attorney, Anne Kiley). But Hollywood is, as ever, a small town. Wasser is representing Kardashian in this case.
According to anonymous sources who spoke to TMZ, Ye’s last attorney, Melcher, struggled to communicate with him as he oscillated between wanting to mend fences and play hardball.
Kardashian has previously razzed Ye, via public statement, for cycling through lawyers. “It saddens me that Kanye continues to make it impossible every step of the way,” she wrote on her Instagram Stories after West criticized her for one of their eldest daughter’s TikTok videos. “I wish to handle all matters regarding our children privately and hopefully he can finally respond to the third attorney he has had in the last year to resolve any issues amicably.”
When Kardashian petitioned the judge to be declared single, she accused her husband of spreading misinformation regarding “private family matters and co-parenting.” Ye responded with an objection that Melcher filed.
After Wednesday’s hearing, Ye released the video for his song “Eazy,” featuring The Game, that includes some disturbing claymation depicting himself burying Pete Davidson, Saturday Night Live comedian and Kardashian’s boyfriend. The video ends with intertitles that read, “EVERYONE LIVED HAPPILY EVER AFTER / EXCEPT SKETE YOU KNOW WHO / JK HE’S FINE.” (Skete is Ye’s pet name for Davidson).
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Kardashian filed for divorce from Ye in February 2021. They had been married nearly seven years, and share four kids under 10.
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