Dina Eastwood (formerly Dina Ruiz, 48) recently made her separation from Clint Eastwood (83) legal, filing papers in Monterey County Superior Court. Clint and Dina were married for 17 years, but have been living separately for some time. Rumour has it that Dina left Clint for her high school boyfriend, Scott Fisher. Fisher is a university assistant basketball coach.
Now, before you start feeling bad for Clint, here's what you need to know: Just two days after Dina confirmed her separation from Clint, Clint was photographed with his new girlfriend, Erica Tomlinson-Fisher, 42. But here's where this story gets even juicier: Until 2012, Erica Tomlinson-Fisher was married to Scott Fisher! As the story goes, after Scott and Erica divorced, Erica became suspicious that Scott and Dina were having a fling. "Erica called Clint’s office last February to discuss her suspicions — then he fell for her!", says an unnamed source. Given the subject matter, there may be a movie here, or at least a TV special.
Clint and Dina have one child together, Morgan, who is 16-years-old. Clint was previously married to Maggie Johnson, with whom he has two children, Alison and Kyle. Clint is dad to five other kids from prior relationships.
The legal issues in this matter will involve property, custody, and spousal support. Division of property will be decided according to Clint and Dina's prenuptial agreement. Dina is asking for physical custody and joint legal custody of Morgan, their 16-year-old daughter and is seeking spousal support.
In Ontario, according to s. 24 of the Children's Law Reform Act (CLRA), custody and access are determined based solely on the best interest of the child. Moreover, Ontario courts are authorized to take into consideration the views and preferences of the child in question (s. 64 CLRA). However, as in this instance, where a child is 16 years or older, the child may withdraw from the care or custody of his or her parents.
As a result, while the parties may continue to fight over the physical custody of a child 16 years or older for the purpose of determining support (both child and spousal), a court will rarely make an order relating to the legal custody of a child who is over the age of 16. So while Dina may attempt to obtain physical custody of Morgan as a means to receiving higher support payments, Morgan will most likely be able to choose where she will primarily reside.
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