Arnold Schwarzenegger and Maria Shriver Divorce Finalized More Than a Decade After Filing

Over ten years after they split, Arnold Schwarzenegger and Maria Shriver’s divorce is finalized. According to TMZ, the estranged pair’s divorce was finalized on Tuesday morning in L.A. Superior Court. The pair split over a decade ago amid news that Schwarzenegger fathered a child, Joseph Baena, with the family’s housekeeper. 

There are a couple of reasons why it’s taken so long for their divorce to become finalized. First, TMZ noted that there appeared to be a lack of motivation from both parties to end things for good even though both Schwarzenegger and Shriver have both since moved on. There has also been a very complicated property settlement agreement amid their divorce proceedings. 

TMZ reported that their property settlement will remain confidential. There was an estimated $400 million at stake in their divorce. But, it doesn’t seem as though they encountered any issues when it came to agreeing upon the settlement, as they reportedly split everything down the middle. A private judge reportedly signed off on Schwarzenegger and Shriver’s divorce in early December. However, they had to wait until a sitting judge could sign off on it before it could be officially entered into the court system. 

Schwarzenegger and Shriver began dating in 1982 and wed in 1986. They did not have a prenuptial agreement in place before they got married. The pair welcomed four children together — Katherine, Christina, Patrick, and Christopher. The estranged couple announced their split in May 2011 amid reports that Schwarzenegger fathered a son with the family’s housekeeping, Mildred Patricia Baena. At the time, they released a statement that read, per E! News, “This has been a time of great personal and professional transition for each of us. After a great deal of thought, reflection, discussion and prayer, we came to this decision together. At this time, we are living apart while we work on the future of our relationship.”

Shortly after announcing their split, Schwarzenegger confirmed that he fathered a child with Mildred while he was still married to Shriver. He said that he informed Shriver of the news after he left the office of Governor of California in January 2011. He said, “After leaving the governor’s office I told my wife about this event, which occurred over a decade ago. I understand and deserve the feelings of anger and disappointment among my friends and family. There are no excuses and I take full responsibility for the hurt I have caused.”