'ecstatic'
Mel B and ex Stephen Belafonte finalise divorce as she’s told to pay him £270k at end of divorce battle
Meanwhile Mel B also celebrated the end of the long court battle, posting a snap of herself dancing on Instagram
MEL B and ex Stephen Belafonte was both celebrating at the end of their long court battle - as she was ordered to pay his £270,000 legal fees.
A Los Angeles judge ruled that the former Spice Girl, 43, has to pay the producer half the sum within 30 days and the other half when their £6million mansion is sold.
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Judge Mark Juhas threw out restraining orders the warring couple had tried to slap on each other.
The pair were also ordered to set aside £850,000 when they sell their former marital home to pay back taxes they owe.
America’s Got Talent star Mel was also ordered to pay Belafonte £3,800-a-month in child support for their six-year-old daughter Madison.
After Monday's hearing Belafonte said: “I’m ecstatic - I’m going to Disneyworld. I got everything I wanted and we could have settled this months ago. It's such a relief that it's finally over.”
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But Belafonte, also 43, said he was “disappointed” that his request for step visitation with 10-year-old Angel - Mel's daughter by Eddie Murphy - was not part of the agreement.
He added: “We wanted to get all the other issues between us settled so I decided to table that. But it’s very possible I could try again - because I would really like to spend time with Angel.”
Mel also celebrated, posting a boomerang of herself dancing on Instagram.
She also posted a snap of herself captioned with the poem Still I Rise by Maya Angelou.
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The step parent visitation motion was just one of several issues - mostly involving children and finances - that the judge tried to get the couple to resolve in his courtroom last month.
But after nine gruelling hours over two days in court, the couple couldn’t end their bitter deadlock which included Belafonte’s request for a restraining order against Mel.
He claimed that she “wants him dead or thrown in jail” and she wanted an order requiring him not to harass her and to stay 100 yards away from her.
With no sign of a compromise between the couple, Judge Juhas ordered both to come back to court on Monday to try and settle their differences.
In their settlement, while they’ll voluntarily stay 200 yards away from each other, exceptions will be made for daughter Madison’s school events, extra-curricular activities and teacher conferences.
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They’ll also split vacation and school holiday time with Madison and, according to their agreement, “Neither parent will make disparaging remarks to Madison about the other parent.”
Belafonte and Mel were divorced last December after a bitter nine-month battle in which lurid tales of kinky sex, drug and alcohol abuse and allegations of domestic violence made headlines.
Despite their divorce being final more than six months ago, trying to settle complicated issues between them has seen Mel estimate that she’s now spent more than £750,000 in legal fees.
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