Actress Halle Berry demands sole legal custody of son 1 year after finalizing divorce

Actress Halle Berry has filed documents seeking sole custody of her 10-year-old son Maceo.

The filing comes just days after Berry asked the courts to force her ex-husband Olivier Martinez to attend co-parenting therapy, according to People. The request was denied by a Superior Court judge on Aug. 1.

Berry and Martinez had initially agreed to attend co-parenting therapy in May. Court papers obtained by People revealed that Berry and Martinez were seeking help to “resolve disputes and conflicts between them in an effort to successfully co-parent.”

However, the request issued on Aug. 1 claimed Martinez chose “to repeatedly violate agreements and court orders with careless regard.” Berry alleged that Martinez’s actions harm their son and their “already strained relationship.”

On Aug. 16, Berry filed documents requesting sole custody of their son “or in the alternative, tie-breaking authority to make all decisions” regarding Maceo’s well-being, People and Fox News reported.

Berry and Martinez finalized their divorce in 2023, eight years after ending their marriage in 2015, Fox reported.

In this latest filing, Berry said she’s made efforts to help her son with his “educational challenges,” saying she’s “fought for tutoring, an educational assessment and finding an environment that was suitable to Maceo’s needs,” People reports. But Berry claims Martinez is “oppositional, unmoving and withheld his consent for years.”

“To summarize, Respondent refuses to co-parent or communicate in a child-centered way or make child-centered decisions, which interferes with getting Maceo the help he needs,” the filing alleges, according to People. “By refusing to communicate, withholding consent, or deferring decisions, he has effectively delegated to himself sole decision-making authority in violation of the parties’ Stipulated Judgment.”

Martinez’s lawyer told People that he will be “responding to these allegations” in days to come.