What Is Marital Misconduct? Kristin Cavallari Accuses Jay Cutler Of 'Inappropriate Marital Misconduct' Amid Divorce Proceedings
Details about their divorce are starting to trickle out.
Getty Fans were pretty shocked to find out that Kristin Cavallari and Jay Cutler are going their separate ways, but maybe this is something we should have all seen coming... especially since there might be more to it than the couple has shared on social media.
After announcing the news over the weekend, we now know that Cavallari has cited marital misconduct as one of the reasons she filed for divorce in their paperwork.
What is marital misconduct?
and what does it mean for Cavallari and Cutler? Here's what we know so far.
Cavallari and Cutler announced their divorce on Sunday.
In a heartfelt Instagram post, Cavallari shared the news over the weekend, seemingly attributing their divorce to them growing apart.
"With great sadness, after 10 years together we have come to a loving conclusion to get a divorce," she wrote. "We have nothing but love and respect for one another and are deeply grateful for the years shared, memories made, and the children we are so proud of. This is just the situation of two people growing apart. We ask everyone to respect our privacy as we navigate this difficult time within our family."
In court documents, Cavallari cited misconduct as her reason for wanting a divorce.
Since the announcement, divorce papers between Cavallari and Cutler have surfaced and in them, she said that Cutler "is guilty of such inappropriate marital conduct as renders further cohabitation unsafe and improper." She also cited "irreconcirable differences" and "inappropriate marital conduct," although she didn't expand on what that actually means.
Cutler accused Cavallari of the same.
Cavallari also wrote that Cutler has accused her of marital misconduct as well. The papers say, "any misconduct alleged or implied against her in the complaint for divorce was in response to and/or as a result of misconduct on behalf of the Husband," making the situation all the more confusing — especially since neither of them seemed to go into specifics.
But what is marital misconduct? Here's the legal definition.
Legally, the definition of marital misconduct is "conduct that is alleged to have caused the erosion of the marriage. In some states the spouse found guilty of martial misconduct will be adversely effected during property division, distribution of spousal support, or awarding attorney's fees."
This could mean anything from adultery, addiction, domestic violence, cruel treatment, or economic fault, and Cavallari and Cutler didn't specify which of these might apply to their divorce just yet.
For Cavallari and Cutler, it could have meant a lot of different things.
Publicly, Cavallari and Cutler are playing it all off as being on different paths and growing apart, but misconduct would definitely insinuate more than that going on behind the scenes. In the past, Cutler has been accused of cheating on Cavallari with her friend, Kelly Henderson, though they've shot those rumors down. Beyond that — and the couple talking about the ups and downs in their relationship from time to time on Very Cavallari — it's hard to imagine what they might be referring to in the paperwork, especially since they've seemed to be on good terms lately, even traveling to the Bahamas together in March.
Cavallari has also accused Cutler of not being present for their children.
In the documents, Cavallari also asked for primary physical custody of all three of their children, though Cutler is asking for joint custody.
"She denies that Husband has always been the available at home parent and primary caretaker of the parties' minor children. Wife would show that she has been the primary residential parent," the papers say.
We can only hope that Cavallari and Cutler will expand on this more in the future (or on their show), but for now, what really went down between them is anyone's guess. Whatever it was though, it definitely sounds like it may have been more serious than they're letting on.
Nicole Pomarico is an entertainment and lifestyle writer whose work has appeared in Cosmo, Us Weekly, Refinery29, and more.