Jacko sued by ex-wife over divorce settlement

Debbie Rowe, the former wife of Michael Jackson, is suing sued the troubled pop singer, claiming he failed to pay her what he promised when the two divorced in 1999.

In the lawsuit, filed on July 3 in Los Angeles Superior Court, Rowe seeks an immediate payment of €14,400 for legal fees and more than €39,000 in living expenses so that she can continue pursuing her child-custody case against him.

The next court hearing on the matter will be held on July 26.

Rowe is the mother of Jackson’s two children, Prince Michael Joseph Jackson, nine, and Paris-Michael Katherine Jackson, eight. She gave up her parental rights to the children in 2001 but asked a judge to reinstate them in 2003 after she learned of Jackson’s arrest on child molestation charges.

Rowe says in the lawsuit that Jackson stopped making his promised payments to her in October 2003.

Jackson agreed when they divorced to pay his ex-wife €808,000 a year for the first three years after their split and €600,000 annually for six more years. Rowe also received a house in Beverly Hills and a 1998 Ford Explorer. She agreed to visit her children only once every 45 days, according to the lawsuit.

Jackson maintained ownership of his Neverland Ranch and two adjacent properties in Santa Barbara, California, other residential and commercial properties, plus a fleet of vehicles that includes two fire engines, three vintage Rolls-Royces, four tractors and nine golf carts.