A Summary of the Lance Armstrong Divorce
The Lance Armstrong Divorce was finalized in September of 2003, which ended the nearly 4-year marriage between Lance Armstrong and Kristin Richard – the couple was wed in May of 1998. The events leading up to the Lance Armstrong Divorce were kept confidential at the behest of both Richard and Armstrong. At the time of the Lance Armstrong Divorce, Lance Armstrong was regarded as both an inspirational and electrifying professional cyclist; a classification that he still retains today. Despite his cycling acumen, Lance Armstrong won international cycling championships while undergoing treatment for testicular cancer; his testament of strength and endurance allowed placed him in the international spotlight:
The couple underwent mediation prior to the finalization of the Lance Armstrong divorce in order to settle outside of court; during this time, the couple was residing separately in Austin, Texas
The couple shared 3 children who were born during the duration of the marriage; Luke, Isabelle, and Grace
The Details of the Lance Armstrong Divorce
The respective celebrity status shared by both Lance Armstrong and Kristin Richard – within the Lance Armstrong Divorce settlement – would allow for personal and privileged details latent within the personal relationship shared by Lance Armstrong and Kristin Richard to be released into public record:
In article written for ‘Glamour’ Magazine by Kristin Richard after the Lance Armstrong Divorce settlement warning would-be brides to remain cognizant during the time prior to a prospective marriage, many media sources speculated that Kristin Richards was writing the article from ’personal experience’
During an interview with Oprah Winfrey, Kristin Richard lamented that the Lance Armstrong Divorce resulted from her dissatisfaction with her role in the marriage, claiming that she oftentimes felt more like a ‘cheerleader’ for Lance Armstrong rather than a wife
However, the details of the actual settlement with regard to custody, alimony, and the division of assets was not released to the public record
The Lance Armstrong and Common Law
The legal stipulations undertaken within a celebrity divorce – akin to those inherent within traditional divorces – express strict parameters with regard to the release of the specific divorce settlement to public record
The realm of public record allows the terms of a divorce settlement to be accessed within the realm of common law – a primary tenet of common law allows past cases to serve as legislative parameters taken into consideration by specific judicial review.
The Determination of Contest within the Lance Armstrong Divorce
In many cases, the celebrity status enjoyed by both Lance Armstrong and Kristin Richard would be viewed as a gift and a privilege; however, in the case of the Lance Armstrong Divorce, the media coverage latent within the Lance Armstrong Divorce proceedings thrust the legal undertakings into the spotlight – a dynamic that was considered to threaten the privacy of the couple facing dissolution:
In the event that a couple mutually decides to file for divorce in an uncontested fashion, which means that the couple has both agreed to the terms of the divorce settlement, as well as to the reasoning for the ultimate dissolution of the marriage, the specific details of the divorce settlement are not released to the public record
In an attempt to maintain privacy with regard to not only the monetary terms and conditions of the Lance Armstrong Divorce settlement, but also with regard to the alleged reasons for the Lance Armstrong Divorce taking place, the respective legal teams belonging to Lance Armstrong and Kristin Richard determined that the Lance Armstrong Divorce would be filed as uncontested in nature