- Kevin Costner accused his estranged wife of funding her legal services in their divorce on his dime.
- The “Yellowstone” star said he had no choice but to lower the limits on Christine Baumgartner’s credit cards after she made the purchases without his knowledge.
- Costner maintained that a $30,000 a month credit card limit was still reasonable to take care of their kids’ needs.
Kevin Costner has refuted his former partner’s allegation that he abruptly cancelled her credit cards after she filed for divorce from him.
The “Yellowstone” star said a legal declaration late last week that he was forced to curb estranged wife Christine Baumgartner’s spending after she racked up six figures worth of legal and accounting services on credit cards he pays for without his knowledge or OK.
“Christine says I have not maintained the status quo because I cancelled one of her credit cards and because I put (a large) limit on the use of the credit card she uses,” Costner said in a June 30 declaration, which was obtained by Insider. “I agreed to maintain the status quo with respect to our children. I have done so. I have continued to pay for all of the children’s expenses since Christine filed for divorce. Christine does not claim that the children’s expenses have not been paid.”
Last month, the actor said he offered to pay Baumgartner $65,000 towards her legal fees, but her lawyers never responded.
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Costner said he then was forced to step in and limit her access to his credit cards after he discovered Baumgartner used them to pay $45,000 for a Los Angeles-based lawyer, on top of the $40,000 she’d spent on her Santa Barbara-based legal team. She also charged $10,000 for the services of a forensic accountant, and another $10,000 for a separate forensic accountant whose services she no longer plans to utilize, Costner alleged in his declaration.
“It was then that I made the decision that there needed to be some reasonable limitation on the use of the credit cards,” Costner said in court papers. “My lawyer gave her lawyers written notice.”
Lawyers for the former couple did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Baumgartner, 49, a handbag designer who said in court papers that she is unemployed, filed for divorce from Costner in May, citing “irreconcilable differences.”
The pair, who were married for nearly two decades and have three teenage children, are set to appear in a California court later this week, where a judge will rule on Costner’s motion to enforce a provision of their prenuptial agreement forcing her to move out within 30 days in the event they divorced.
Baumgartner has said in court documents she would move out by the end of August – but only if the “Field of Dreams” star agrees to pay her $248,000 a month in order to maintain their children’s lifestyle. Costner said Baumgartner’s wife’s demand was absurd, and accused her of padding the figure in order to maintain her own luxury lifestyle.
