NEW YORK — Supermodel Linda Evangelista and a billionaire French businessman have reached an agreement Monday to end their child support fight wherein the 90s fashion icon sought upwards of $46,000 in a monthly stipend. Francois-Henri Pinault, through his attorney, complained that the figure was too high, although Pinault spends at least that much on clothing, vacations and twice as much on jewelry according to reports.
Evangelista, Pinault and their attorneys were silent about the details after settlement was reachd, but they appear relieved by the resolution. “Everybody is very glad that it’s over,” Pinault lawyer David Aronson told Associated Press.
The settlement came in the midst of a trial over how much, if anything, Pinault should pay toward the care of their 5-year-old son. Pinault is the CEO of a company that owns Gucci, Yves St. Laurent and other top-flight fashion lines; he’s now married to actress Salma Hayek.
Both Pinault and Evangelista had testified at the trial, answering questions that delved into her career, his high-flying finances and his limited relationship with the boy. Evangelista had been due to continue testifying Monday.
The two sides negotiated all weekend and into Monday morning, according to a person familiar with the negotiations. The person spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss the private talks.
In legal papers, Evangelista had said she was spending $46,000 a month on armed bodyguards, a 24-hour-a-day nanny and other expenses for the boy, Augustin, nicknamed Augie. He was born in 2006 after a four-month relationship; Pinault said he and Evangelista spent only about seven days together in all.
Evangelista’s lawyer said she willingly paid all the child’s expenses at first, but she now needs some help. While Evangelista – who once quipped that supermodels “don’t wake up for less than $10,000 a day” – testified that she still can command about $100,000 to walk a runway, attorney William Beslow said her roughly $1.8 million-a-year income sank last year because a major contract with L’Oreal ended.
“Ms. Evangelista is not looking to piggyback the lifestyle of Mr. Pinault,” Beslow said in an opening statement last week. He said she wasn’t asking for any particular amount.
As part of the family behind luxury-brands conglomerate PPR, Pinault makes about $4 million a year, and Forbes estimates his family’s net worth at $13 billion. He wears a $100,000 watch, dropped about $52,000 on a 12-day vacation to Bora Bora and bought himself about $62,000 in clothes in a single year, according to his testimony.
Pinault, who has a 4-year-old daughter with Hayek and two other children from a previous marriage, legally recognized Augie as his son in 2007. Pinault said Evangelista asked for what he considered an unreasonable amount of child support, he countered with another offer, and he didn’t get a response for years. She went to court in 2010.
“We are not going to claim that he cannot pay a fair and reasonable child support,” Aronson said in an opening statement. But $46,000 a month, he said, would be “just ridiculous.”
But is $46,000 too much for a billionaire to pay for child-support? Considering some celebrities who have had to pay much more are worth significantly less than Pinault, his argument rings hollow.
Here’s a list of entertainers who have had to pay more child-support than Evangelista requested of Pinault:
– Charlie Sheen: As part of his 2011 divorce settlement from Brooke Mueller, Sheen was to pay $55,000 per month for the support of their twin sons. In June 2011, a Los Angeles judge ordered Sheen’s former bosses at Warner Bros. Television to garnish the money from any payments made to the former “Two and a Half Men” star.
– Nas: In December 2009, the rapper was ordered to pay more than $51,000 per month to his ex-wife, singer Kelis, and their son.
– Martin Brodeur: In March 2009, the New Jersey Devils goalie was ordered to pay his ex-wife $500,000 a year in alimony until 2020, as well as $132,000 in annual child support.
– Russell Simmons: In February 2009, the hip-hop mogul agreed to pay $40,000 per month in child support for his daughters Ming and Aoki with ex-wife Kimora Lee Simmons. The payments were to continue until both girls reach 19 1/2.
– Britney Spears: In July 2008, months after erratic behavior landed her in the hospital and saw her father appointed conservator of her estate, the pop singer reached a settlement with ex-husband Kevin Federline that had her paying him $20,000 per month in child support.