It must\u2019ve been love at the start, but it\u2019s far from over now for many favorite celebrity couples.<\/p>\n
Although celebrity marriages give many\u00a0some hope for true love, the ever-increasing divorce rate among A-list\u00a0couples makes marriage seem rather bleak. With the unexpected announcement over Memorial Day weekend that Ben Stiller and Christine Taylor were splitting \u2014 not to mention\u00a0the gut-wrenching end to Brangelina<\/a> \u2014 it\u2019s much harder in recent years to determine who’s in it for the long haul.<\/p>\n Naturally, it begs the question: How do celebrities play out their divorces in the public eye? To answer that question, a celebrity couple has to navigate their exit strategies carefully. Since Hollywood divorce lawyers aren\u2019t dealing with the average separation, there are many unknown secrets to how these dilemmas are ultimately handled behind closed doors.<\/p>\n READ:<\/strong>\u00a0Angelina Jolie Pictured With Shiloh And Kids At Disneyland For Birthday After Brad Pitt Divorce<\/em><\/a><\/p>\n SORTING OUT THE SETTLEMENT BEFORE FILING FOR DIVORCE<\/strong><\/p>\n While some celebrity couples have the gritty details of their divorce plastered all over headlines (e.g. Johnny Depp and Amber Heard), most high-profile couples seek to minimize media coverage on their pending separation. In this case, the couple works alongside a celebrity divorce lawyer to hash out the settlement details before officially filing for divorce.<\/p>\n \u201cPeople may not even realize that this couple is getting divorced but we\u2019re actually all the way through the entire settlement before they even file anything with the court and announce to the world that they\u2019re splitting up,\u201d Laura Wasser, famed Hollywood divorce lawyer, told Vanity Fair in September<\/a>. \u201cThen they don\u2019t have to go through their entire divorce-settlement negotiation under a microscope.\u201d<\/p>\n DIVORCE ANNOUNCEMENTS ARE OFTEN STRATEGICALLY\u00a0SCHEDULED<\/strong><\/p>\n Although a high-profile divorce announcement is practically unavoidable, there is indeed a \u201cbest time\u201d to release the news in a way that won\u2019t cause an immediate eruption.<\/p>\n According\u00a0to Wasser<\/a>, \u201cthe best time to file a divorce petition used to be Friday afternoon.\u201d The math behind a Friday afternoon announcement stems directly from the lack of attention news outlets would give to a report of this caliber at such a late hour. However, divorce announcements are now primarily made before holiday weekends.<\/p>\n Leading into Memorial Day weekend\u00a0last week<\/a>, Ben Stiller and Christine Taylor announced that they have filed for separation after 17 years of marriage. A-list couples that have previously followed this pattern include<\/a>: Drew Barrymore and Will Koppelman (around April Fools Day), Casey Affleck and Summer Phoenix (around Saint Patrick\u2019s Day), and Khlo\u00e9 Kardashian and Lamar Odom (around Memorial Day weekend).<\/p>\n In the case that the clients have children, Vanity Fair stated<\/a>\u00a0that it\u2019s common for the couple \u201cto drop the bombshell when their children are out of school\u201d for the summer.<\/p>\n COURTS MAKE IT EASIER FOR CELEBRITIES<\/strong><\/p>\n Have you ever wondered how celebrities make it in and out of a courtroom while avoiding the public\u2019s attention? Well, the Los Angeles court system has developed a few methods to aid in the legal process of the rich and famous.<\/p>\n According to\u00a0E! News reporter<\/a> Seija Rankin, \u201ccourthouse police are notified in advance when a celebrity is expected in the building.\u201d Whether a celebrity is visiting for a divorce hearing or to file paperwork, the courthouse ensures a smooth process.<\/p>\n \u201cOnce they arrive they go straight to a special underground parking lot that is reserved for vehicles with a specific clearance, and they use a closed corridor with an escort to get into the building,\u201d Rankin reported<\/a>\u00a0in May. \u201cStars are also allowed to use the conference rooms as a de facto VIP waiting room so as to avoid members of the public or the media who may be roaming the hallways.\u201d<\/p>\n In many cases, celebrities will hire a private judge to handle their divorce. The couple and their lawyers will meet at a designated location outside a courtroom to conduct the case as if it were being played out in a normal hearing.<\/p>\n \u201cIn a normal divorce case, the press and the public can sit in on judicial proceedings,\u201d said Melissa Murray<\/a>, a law professor at University of California at Berkeley, in an interview with Vanity Fair last March. \u201cWith private judges, since it\u2019s not revealed when and where it\u2019s going to happen, they never do.\u201d<\/p>\n READ:\u00a0<\/strong>Brad Pitt Says After Angelina Jolie Divorce He Is \u2018Not Suicidal,\u2019 Focusing On Kids<\/em><\/a><\/p>\n PAPARAZZI OFTEN SERVE AS PRIVATE INVESTIGATORS<\/strong><\/p>\n Generally, media coverage isn\u2019t beneficial in a courtroom. Yet, in the case of a messy Hollywood divorce where one of the clients believes their husband or wife is guilty of wrongdoing, the hired attorney has the ability to search through tabloid coverage to find potential evidence.<\/p>\n \u201cNo private investigator has to be hired in a celebrity case because TMZ and the paparazzi already follow them,\u201d Neal Hersh<\/a>, a celebrity divorce lawyer, told Vanity Fair. \u201cThey do our work for us. In a celebrity case, every move they make is going to be photographed.\u201d<\/p>\n Hersh has been able to utilize this method in a previous case he worked on to determine whether one-half of the couple had a drinking problem.<\/p>\n \u201cWe couldn\u2019t prove whether it was apple juice or scotch inside it, but it was in the evening and the person had a highball glass, like you would drink scotch out of,\u201d he said<\/a>.<\/p>\n OFFICIAL STATEMENTS FROM THE COUPLE<\/strong><\/p>\n To confirm the divorce announcement, couples will often submit a statement to comfort and ease fans about their decision. These statements are often written up by way of an iPhone note or the traditional pencil and paper method.<\/p>\n While many statements may surface in the form of a joint message like Ben Affleck and Jennifer Garner\u2019s in 2015, countless stars are resorting to taking control of the situation via the digital web.<\/p>\n Gwyneth Paltrow shared a statement<\/a>\u00a0regarding her \u201cconscious uncoupling\u201d with Chris Martin on her lifestyle blog, Goop. Other stars,\u00a0including the likes<\/a> of Lady Gaga and Colleen Ballinger (aka Miranda Sings) have utilized the digital space in this way as well.<\/p>\n More recently, musician Elle King took to Instagram to share the details<\/a>\u00a0of her secret marriage and divorce to Andrew Ferguson.<\/p>\n \u201cWe secretly got married 3 weeks after we met on 2\/14\/2016. It was and will forever be, one of the happiest days of my life,\u201d King s<\/a>aid on Instagram<\/a>\u00a0earlier this month. \u201cAs we separate, and attempt to find our footing through life, all I can hope for us is that we both find happiness within ourselves.\u201d<\/p>\n ![\"Christine](\"http:\/\/s1.ibtimes.com\/sites\/www.ibtimes.com\/files\/styles\/embed\/public\/2017\/05\/27\/christine-taylor-ben-stiller.jpg "\\"\\"\/")
<\/picture> Christine Taylor and Ben Stiller released a joint statement following their decision to go their separate ways. Pictured: Taylor, Stiller at the premiere of \u201cTropic Thunder\u201d in Westwood, California on Aug. 11, 2008.<\/span> Photo: Reuters\/Mario Anzuoni<\/span> <\/span> <\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n
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