After three and a half years of marriage, television host Star Jones has filed for divorce from husband Al Reynolds. Jones actually filed almost a month ago in New York Superior Court in Manhattan, but the filing was sealed and not discovered by the media until this week. The case is apparently “uncontested“, suggesting that Reynolds does not dispute the need for divorce. Reynolds has hired high-profile New York divorce attorney Stanford Lotwin, who previously represented Donald Trump, Geraldo Rivera and Howard Stern. The name of Jones’ attorney has not yet been reported.

Jones and Reynolds were married in a highly criticized, lavish wedding in New York City in November 2004. At the time, Jones was a co-host on the television talk show The View and courted corporate sponsors and freebies for the nuptials. Almost immediately, gossip columnists and bloggers began speculating about Reynolds’ sexuality and reporting an imminent split. In July, 2006, it was reported that Reynolds was spotted at Lotwin’s offices in Manhattan – a charge which both denied at the time. (Quite a coincidence that Reynolds would hire Lotwin now but claimed the meeting reports were false back in 2006!) The couple has no children.

It is unknown whether the couple signed a prenuptial agreement before their marriage. New York is not a community property state. Instead, property is handled by equitable distribution. In the absence of a prenuptial agreement or a settlement agreement, a judge will divide the marital property in a fair and just manner. Because the court records have been sealed, we don’t yet know if the divorce has been sought on no-fault grounds or on at-fault grounds. New York allows no-fault divorces only where the parties have lived separately for at least one year. At-fault grounds include adultery, cruelty, abandonment for more than a year or imprisonment of one of the parties for more than three years. Reynolds is possibly living in Florida which may indicate that no-fault divorce is a possibility here.

Although Jones couldn’t stop talking about her wedding and relationship four years ago, she now predictably requests the media give her privacy during the divorce process. Reynolds’ spokesperson claimed that his client would “take the high road” in the divorce. Time will tell.

Sources: etonline, People.com