There has been a poignant conclusion to Shannen Doherty’s divorce dispute with her estranged husband in the wake of the star’s death.
Just one day before the Charmed star passed away, she agreed to settle her divorce from Kurt Iswarienko without contest – and the divorce has been granted posthumously.
Doherty, who had been battling brain cancer, died on July 13, aged 53.
She had been in the middle of an acrimonious divorce battle with Iswarienko, even claiming that he was waiting for her to die so he wouldn’t have to pay spousal support – a claim he denied.
According to documents obtained by People, Doherty agreed in her final days not to receive spousal support, allowing the divorce to proceed uncontested.
‘’I knowingly give up forever any right to receive spousal or partner support,’’ she wrote on the document.
On July 19, it was confirmed that the divorce had been granted two days after her death..
Los Angeles County court documents showed that Doherty and her lawyer Laura Wasser had been working to finish the details of her divorce right up until the hours before she died.
In an agreement with Iswarienko filed on July 12, Doherty was granted the couple’s Malibu home, a Salvador Dali painting, several cars and all earnings from her acting, AP reports.
Doherty died on July 13 and a judge signed off on the agreement, declaring the couple divorced, on Monday July 15, two days after her death.
As Doherty had no children, it’s unclear who her assets will go to.
Originally, Doherty filed for divorce from Iswarienko in 2023 after 11 years of marriage.
Her publicist claimed that Iswarienko’s agent was “intimately involved” in the divorce.
“Divorce is the last thing Shannen wanted. Unfortunately, she felt she was left with no other option,” the publicist said.
Doherty had previously requested a monthly spousal support payment of $15,343 retroactive to June 1.
Earlier this year, Doherty accused her ex-husband of intentionally delaying the settlement.
“It is simply not right that Kurt be permitted to prolong our divorce in hopes that I die before he is required to pay me while he continues to live his life and shirk his responsibilities to his dying wife of more than 11 years,” she wrote in documents obtained by People.
Iswarienko denied the allegation.
“Kurt is not ‘simply wait[ing] for Shannen to die,’ ” Iswarienko’s lawyer said. “He wants the best for Shannen and he wants both of them to be able to put this case behind them and move forward.”
Despite the divorce situation, Doherty remained positive throughout her battle, while being open and honest with fans about the challenges she faced.
“I definitely have days where I say, ‘Why me?’ And then I go, ‘Well, why not me? Who else? Who else beside me deserves this?’ None of us do.”
News of her Doherty’s death was announced on July 14. “It is with a heavy heart that I confirm the passing of actress Shannen Doherty,” her publicist stated to People.
“On Saturday, July 13, she lost her battle with cancer after many years of fighting the disease.”
Doherty was first diagnosed with breast cancer in 2015, announcing in 2017 that she was going into remission.
In 2019, the cancer returned, with the actress sharing that it had progressed to stage 4 in February 2020 while on ABC News.
Who is Shannen Doherty’s ex husband?
Kurt Iswarienko is a photographer who has worked for companies including Chanel and Estee Lauder.
Iswarienko was beside Doherty when she first announced her cancer diagnosis
“My marriage was always strong, but it’s made my marriage a thousand times stronger,” Doherty told Entertainment Tonight in 2016. “I could not have gotten through this without my husband.”
Sharing details of how he reacted to the diagnosis, she went on.
“[He] hugged me and said, ‘We are going to get through this. You are going to be okay,’ ” she said. ”‘We are going to get through this, you’re strong and you’re powerful and you’re not going anywhere. You have so much to do in your life. We are going to get through it as a family.’ ”
