Frances Bean Cobain, daughter of deceased Nirvana lead Kurt Cobain and Hole’s Courtney Love, is all grown up and getting a divorce. The young woman, 23, cited irreconcilable differences in her split from Isaiah Silva after only 21 months of marriage.
Cobain’s divorce filing requests that she be allowed to keep the entirety of her father’s $ 450 million estate, reports People. She is however reportedly open to paying Silva — a rocker, like her father — spousal support. The two were together for five years before getting married in a small, secret ceremony (mom, Courtney Love, did not attend).
Community Property
Without knowing the precise details of Cobain’s enormous holdings — whether the inheritance was held in trust and happened to be passed to her during the marriage, or whether she inherited at 18, for example — it is difficult to say if there will be any issue here. Cobain wants to keep her father’s inheritance and it seems likely she will be allowed to do so, considering California law.
Whether a divorcing person can maintain separate property after splitting up depends on the rules of marital property applicable in their state. Cobain is in California, which is a community property state. In community property states, any assets acquired during the marriage are considered the property of both parties and split evenly.
Assets acquired during the marriage are considered separate property and are owned by the original owner, so Frances Bean should be fine to keep all of her millions. It seems highly likely that she inherited her enormous estate before getting married — perhaps after turning 18 — and should get to keep the riches her father made as Nirvana’s lead.
A Shy Guy
It is also notable that Cobain’s soon-to-be-ex, despite being a lead singer in a rock band, is a little shy about publicity and quite uncomfortable with seeming to profit from his Cobain connection. Silva reportedly broke up his last band when it got a lot of attention due to his relationship to Frances Bean, waiting a while before putting together a new group called The Eeries.
Success was inescapable, however. That group too was blessed by its association with Cobain and got a record deal and national attention after releasing its first song. So you can see, it’s not easy being Frances Bean Cobain’s husband.
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Related Resources:
- Courtney Love’s Twibel Case Goes to Trial (FindLaw’s Celebrity Justice)
- Courtney Love Sued by Memoir Writer (FindLaw’s Celebrity Justice)
- Divorce Property Division FAQ (FindLaw’s Celebrity Justice)
- Checklist: Dividing Marital Property (FindLaw’s Celebrity Justice)