Jessica Simpson Files for Divorce

By: Shannon Gossage

Simpson cited "irreconcilable differences" as the reason behind the break-up. She asked the court not to award Lachey spousal support and that her last name be legally changed back to Simpson. While she has always used Jessica Simpson as her professional name, she officially changed her name to Jessica Lachey after her 2002 wedding. There were reports that their marriage was on the rocks for months leading up to the actual announcement that they were splitting. A joint statement was released last month, "After three years of marriage, and careful thought and consideration, we have decided to part ways. This is the mutual decision of two people with an enormous amount of respect and admiration for each other. We hope that you respect our privacy during this difficult time."

There are conflicting reports as to what went wrong in the marriage. Some sources say that Simpson is the innocent and Lachey’s infidelity and partying are behind the break-up. The other stance is that Simpson’s drinking, infidelity, and partying caused the rift. They met in 1998 at the Hollywood Christmas Parade. They began dating and in 2002 Lachey popped the big question on a chartered yacht in Hawaii. At the time of their marriage, Nick was the bigger name since he was part of the boy band 98 Degrees. Shortly after their wedding, MTV launched the reality show Newlyweds: Nick and Jessica and they instantly shot to fame. Jessica became the breakout star of the show while Nick took a back seat.

Simpson refused to sign a pre-nup before her wedding to Lachey. He reportedly even had one drawn up, but she wouldn’t budge. That may come back to haunt her considering that without a pre-nup, under Californian law, all assets acquired during the marriage are split in half. Simpson earned a mere $35 million in 2004, so it would be a sweet deal for Nick. Guess she should’ve signed that pre-nup after all.