Movie fans in Arizona and around the country were likely shocked in 2015 when Ben Affleck and Jennifer Garner announced that they were divorcing just one day after celebrating their 10th wedding anniversary. The A-list couple’s separation has remained, for the most part, a private affair, but media outlets became interested in Affleck and Garner again on April 13 when they officially filed for divorce in California.
Reports suggest that the couple’s divorce will be an amicable one. Garner and Affleck are said to be seeking joint custody of their three children aged 11, 8 and 5, and the couple said that they remained friends and asked the media to respect their privacy in a brief press release. The Hollywood power couple have been photographed together several times since their initial announcement, and their fans had begun to that a reconciliation was possible. However, the news of the divorce filing would seem to put these hopes to rest.
Affleck has referred to Garner as a wonderful mother and said that the couple remains committed to working with each other to raise their children in a recent interview. Court papers reveal that Garner cited irreconcilable differences as the reason for the divorce. Media reports indicate that Affleck and Garner are asking to keep their individual assets and incomes.
Negotiations over potentially contentious issues like spousal support and property division often become heated, and this is especially true when wealthy individuals who live in community property states are involved. Just as in California, judges in Arizona are required to divide marital property equally when called upon to make these decisions, and family law attorneys may urge their clients to take all reasonable steps to reach a compromise to avoid costly and public legal battles.