Halle Berry wants to represent herself in her divorce case with her ex, Olivier Martinez.
Halle Berry wants to represent herself in her divorce case with her ex, Olivier Martinez. In court documents obtained by ET on Tuesday, the 54-year-old actress filed to represent herself instead of an attorney.
According to the documents, her former attorney, Marina Zakiyan Beck, signed off on the change on July 30. Berry signed off on Aug. 11. Meanwhile, 54-year-old Martinez is being represented by celebrity divorce attorney Laura Wasser.
Berry and Martinez filed for divorce in October 2015 after two years of marriage. They share one son together, 6-year-old Maceo. The two filed separately, citing irreconcilable differences and asking for joint custody of their son.
"It is with a heavy heart that we have come to the decision to divorce," Berry and Martinez said in a joint statement at the time. "We move forward with love and respect for one another and the shared focus of what is best for our son. We wish each other nothing but happiness in life and we hope that you respect our and, most importantly, our children's privacy as we go through this difficult period."
However, in September 2016, the two were issued an ultimatum by the court after they failed to move forward with their divorce after their initial filings. A source told ET at the time that despite the "slow paperwork," the divorce was "definitely still happening" and that the exes had been keeping it very cordial between them.
In December 2016, TMZ reported that the two finalized their divorce and that under the settlement, they share physical and legal custody of Maceo. However, in May 2018, the outlet reported that Berry got another notice to appear in court since they never filed their formal custody arrangement.
Per the court documents filed in 2016, Berry and Martinez can claim "single" status until other matters are worked out. But they were sanctioned in 2019 for missing a court hearing in their divorce case, which means not all issues in this divorce case have been resolved.
Berry has been divorced twice before -- first from baseball player David Justice, whom she married in 1993, and then from singer Eric Benét, whom she married in 2001. She has a 12-year-old daughter, Nahla, with her ex-boyfriend, model Gabriel Aubry.
In a February 2017 Q&A at the 2017 City Summit and Gala, Berry talked candidly about her past relationships.
"I have learned to deal with three failed marriages, which has not been easy, especially when there’s children involved," she said. "[As] women, we go into marriage thinking it's going to last forever and that this is our prince on a shiny horse. That's what fairy tales taught me as a kid … and I'm kind of anti-fairy tales today."
"But we go in there with that hope, so when it falls apart it feels like a huge failure and a huge disappointment," she added. "I've often felt guilty and responsible. I've suffered a lot of pain and anguish."
Still, she said she had no regrets.
"In every one of those situations, as hard -- and sometimes embarrassing -- as it was, I learned so much about myself," she said. "All of those relationships were necessary for me. We all come here with lessons that we have to learn and those relationships provided me with lessons that got me to where I am right now. For that, I'm grateful. But it has been hard. It's been a difficult part of my life."
For more on Berry and Martinez's split, watch the video below.
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