Treasurer Bill Lockyer Might Ask for Alimony in Divorce Settlement
California State Treasurer, Bill Lockyer, has filed for divorce from his wife, Nadia, reports the San Jose Mercury News.
Lockyer is a household name among California lawyers, thanks to his prominent tenure as the state's Attorney General from 1999 to 2007.
As Attorney General, Bill Lockyer was unconventional. Bill was known for being a liberal Democrat who favored the death penalty. He shocked California judges by arguing cases personally, as Attorney General. In 2000, he appeared before the state Supreme Court in the case of Hi-Voltage Wire Works Inc. v. City of San Jose, a move that has been dubbed by California Lawyer Magazine as the most controversial thing he did as AG.
He is also recognized for establishing one of the largest civil rights offices in the country, and fighting against elder abuse.At one
point, Californians began speculating that Lockyer would become the next
Governor of California. In fact, Lockyer had announced
his intentions to run for governor around the same time as his wedding to a stunning 31-year-old civil rights attorney from Santa Ana, Nadia Maria
Davis. Bill was 61 at the time, reports the San Francisco
Chronicle.
Lockyer never officially threw his hat in the rink, but in 2010, Lockyer opened his political war chest and gave $1.5 million for his wife's campaign for Alameda County Supervisor, reports the Mercury News.
Nadia Lockyer won a seat on the Board of Supervisors but it later emerged that she was having an affair with a meth-addict she met
at rehab. As if drugs weren't bad enough, there was even a sex
tape of Nadia and her lover.
She resigned from her seat on the Board of Supervisors in April.
Now, after nearly 10 years of marriage, the Lockyers are calling it quits and Bill Lockyer has reserved the right to seek alimony from the unemployed Nadia.
Why would a man with a prominent job demand alimony from his unemployed spouse?
Let's step back for a second here. Bill Lockyer reserved the right to seek alimony, but that doesn't necessarily mean that he plans on seeking alimony.
Bill's salary as state treasurer is $139,979 and his Hayward Hills home is worth $362,378, writes the Marin Independent Journal. Because the couple's community property interests haven't yet been fully determined, Bill's lawyers claim that the mention of alimony was merely a formality.
In fact, it's tough to get spousal support in California when a marriage lasted less than 10 years, Scott Altman, the vice-dean of USC Law School, told the Journal.
There has been no word yet on how Nadia is responding to the divorce filing, (although if Bill is asking for alimony, Nadia will likely ask for the same). Whether either spouse will be entitled to alimony is anyone's guess, but chances are slim on both sides.
We'll just have to wait and see.
Related Resources:
- California Supreme and Appellate Court Cases (FindLaw CaseLaw)
- State Resources: Attorneys General (FindLaw)
- FindLaw California (FindLaw)