PAY UP HARVEY!
Ex wants kid-support $$ before he’s broke
Harvey Weinstein is more worried about saving his own hide than in making sure his kids are taken care of, his ex-wife charged in Manhattan court on Thursday.
Eve Chilton, 56, asked a judge to force her filmmaker ex to cough up the whole $5 million he still owes their daughters, ages 15, 19 and 22, in child support before he’s sapped financially from battling a slew of rape and sexabuse allegations.
“We have an almost weekly, if not daily, avalanche of accusations and allegations that make it clear [Weinstein] is going to have little [money] left,’’ argued Chilton’s lawyer, Bonnie Rabin, ticking off seven lawsuits by women who claim the movie mogul assaulted or harassed them.
“He’s prepaying many, many lawyers many, many millions of dollars to defend himself against these lawsuits all over the world,” she said.
Weinstein dodged Thursday’s proceeding — and the press — with the judge saying he excused the producer because one of his main lawyers was unable to be there. The judge said he may still order Weinstein to appear in court to testify about his net worth.
Chilton, Weinstein’s former assistant, was married to him from 1987 to 2004.
Weinstein, 65, is reportedly worth more than $240 million. He inked a $60 million divorce settlement with Chilton in December 2004 that includes $50,000 a year for vacations.
Part of the outstanding $5 million will cover the kids’ annual Christmas vacation, which will cost $35,000.
One Weinstein lawyer, Steven Silpe, dismissed Chilton’s demand as ridiculous, saying his client has no history of stiffing his ex.
“He’s never not made a payment. He has made every single payment for nearly 14 years,” Silpe said.
But Justice Michael Katz expressed concern about Weinstein’s ability to make future child-support payments.
“If we wait another couple of months, it’s not clear to me if he will be in the same financial situation,” Katz said.
Silpe replied, “I can’t speak to Mr. Weinstein’s finances.”
Katz shot back, “If he was here, I would ask him, because I think that would be relevant for me to know.”
Katz added that he was “concerned” about a statement Weinstein allegedly made to Chilton, which was repeated by a former lawyer. Weinstein reportedly said it was time for her to start picking up the child-support obligations because he’d fallen on hard times.
Still, the judge said there was little precedent for such a “drastic remedy” as Chilton’s request, but promised to consider it before issuing a decision.
Family-law expert Michael Stutman, who is not involved in the case, said Chilton is unlikely to win the case.
“The judge can’t put himself in the position of predicting the outcome of the [sexual-misconduct] claims against Mr. Weinstein,” Stutman said.
And “there’s no proof that he will not have the wherewithal to shoulder the balance of his obligation.”