William Shatner Awarded Horse Seaman In Divorce

You never know what is most important to a couple until that couple splits up. You are then given a peek behind the curtain when the divorce settlement lists specific items both members of the couple obviously valued.

Back in 2013, Stephanie Gonis, the ex-wife of the Black Keys’ Dan Auerbach, was awarded a lock of Bob Dylan’s hair when the couple split.

In 2016, David Hasselhoff got it spelled out in writing that he had the sole rights to his nickname “The Hoff” and the catchphrase “Don’t hassle the Hoff.”

This year, we are learning more than any of us ever needed to know about William Shatner’s horses. The 88-year-old actor recently settled his divorce from ex-wife Elizabeth Shatner, and the couples horses play a major role.

The “Star Trek” star will take custody of two of the couple’s horses, Renaissance Man’s Medici and Powder River Shirley, as well as “all horse semen” and equipment used for horse breeding.

Elizabeth, who met William while working as a horse trainer, will take custody of Belle Reve’s So Photogenic and Pebbles. She has also been granted the right to visit the other horses, with advance notice.

William’s horses will presumably be living on one of the two properties he is granted in the divorce documents — a home in Studio City and Three Rivers Ranch in California. Elizabeth will be taking the couple’s homes in Malibu Cove and Versailles, Kentucky, but she will also be allowed to visit the California ranch to “occasionally harvest fruit” and visit the graves of her first husband and several horses.

That’s a lot of info to unpack, and some of it is rather unusual, but the important thing is the couple was able to come to an amicable agreement. Both William and Elizabeth are obviously very passionate about horses, but what could have been a very bitter dispute seems to have been negotiated rather smoothly. It is touching that Elizabeth has explicitly been granted the right to visit the graves of other horses (and a little bit perplexing that her former husband may be buried with them).

It is also important to point out that all of this literal horse-trading was necessary even though the couple had a prenuptial agreement in place. Those documents simply cannot cover every anticipated scenario. The prenup, however, was still important. Neither member of the former couple will owe the other spousal support despite the fact that they were married 18 years and William is worth an estimated $100 million.

Contact the Law Office of Gary R. Swavely Today

At the Law Office of Gary R. Swavely, Jr., we often work with couples in the Reading area that have special concerns that need to be addressed during a divorce. Nothing is too out-of-the-ordinary to be specifically addressed in a divorce settlement. If it is important to our client, we do our best to see their wishes officially recognized.

If you are contemplating divorce, but you have specific concerns you want to ensure get addressed, let’s talk. Please contact our Reading, PA office to schedule an initial consultation.