LOS ANGELES — Former Los Angeles Clippers owner Donald Sterling has filed for divorce from his wife of nearly 60 years on Wednesday as he continues to battle her over ownership of the team.
Sterling, 81, cited irreconcilable differences in paperwork submitted to the Los Angeles Superior Court, attorney Bobby Samini said. That paperwork was initially rejected by the court as incomplete, but it was corrected and resubmitted afterward. It lists their date of separation as Aug. 1, 2012.
Donald Sterling also filed a petition in probate court Wednesday for an accounting and distribution of assets related to the $2 billion sale of the Clippers to ex-Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer, and claiming he had a right to half of the community property, according to the court documents.
Attorney Pierce O’Donnell said Shelly Sterling has no comment and had not seen either court filing.
Donald Sterling is suing his wife and the NBA in federal court over the $2 billion sale of the team. She negotiated the deal with Ballmer after doctors found Donald Sterling incompetent to handle his business affairs.
The two filings come two weeks before the couple’s 60th anniversary and about four months after a judge ordered V. Stiviano — a woman who Shelly Sterling alleged was her husband’s mistress — to turn over the keys to a $1.8 million house that Donald Sterling bought her and to pay Shelly Sterling about $800,000 that her husband showered on the younger woman in cash, a Ferrari and other luxury vehicles.
The ruling came nearly a year after a recording of Donald Sterling telling Stiviano not to associate with black people led the NBA to ban him for life and fine him $2.5 million. The recording was leaked weeks after Shelly Sterling sued Stiviano, alleging she was her husband’s mistress.
While Shelly Sterling acknowledged marital problems, she said the couple never separated even though she had divorce papers drawn up.
The couple testified at trial in March in Los Angeles Superior Court about their enduring love for each other, displaying cards they gave each other for anniversaries and birthdays.
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