There have been many telltale signs that Jennifer Lopez and Ben Affleck’s marriage was on the rocks but it was still a shock when TMZ reported that the “Let’s Get Loud” singer finally filed for divorce on August 20. The date is particularly a slap in Affleck’s face, as it’s right on the nose of the second anniversary of their Savannah, Georgia wedding ceremony. What’s even more jaw-dropping about this split is that Lopez filed without a lawyer and there’s no prenup agreement between the former couple. According to the documents, she isn’t asking Affleck for alimony and requested that he walk away without any as well.
The details of the split sound like things could get super complicated, especially with Lopez filing sans lawyer. Holly Davis, divorce attorney and founding partner of Kirker Davis LLP. shared with Nicki Swift, “It is highly likely that both Ben and Jen’s teams are working with divorce lawyers behind the scenes.” However, she thinks that Lopez’s filing solo shows that she wants a peaceful divorce. The lack of prenup is where the split gets tricky. “It is wild to me that two people with so much independent wealth coming into a marriage did not have a prenup in place.” The expert thinks that while Lopez isn’t getting contentious yet, she’ll most likely lawyer up if she and Affleck can’t come to an agreement and that’s when the divorce can get messy.
The division of assets will be tricky
According to Celebrity Net Worth, Ben Affleck’s wealth is valued at $150 million, while Jennifer Lopez is worth a whopping $400 million. “I suspect that the delay between their April separation and the filing in late August is because the parties are negotiating the terms of their financial untangling. Because the marriage was only two years long, any joint ventures or investments made with mixed funds are going to be divided,” Holly Davis told Nicki Swift. She added, “My hope is that they kept the wealth that they brought into the marriage separate and distinct from the ventures and investments they made jointly during marriage.”
It seems that Lopez, who is no stranger to messy divorces, knows what she wants to walk away with but Davis shared with us, “If we don’t see an agreement on terms for their divorce soon, however, it’s unlikely that Jennifer will remain without legal counsel. This may be a testing of the waters phase to see how agreeable the parties can be in their negotiations.” The divorce attorney believes that Lopez’s request for no spousal support on both ends will be granted by the judge, as she and Affleck can obviously provide very well for themselves. As of now, their divorce can be a clean cut but Davis stated, “If we don’t see a deal and finalization here shortly, however, all bets could be off.”
