Pop Culture

Kimora Lee Simmons Responds to Ex’s Divorce Filing, Says Custody Transfer Request Was an Error

Leissner, who Simmons married in 2014, is currently serving a two-year sentence for his involvement in an embezzlement scheme.

Stephane Cardinale - Corbis
Stephane Cardinale - Corbis

Contrary to early reports, Kimora Lee Simmons is not requesting for her estranged husband, Tim Leissner, to be the primary guardian of their 11-year-old son, Wolfe.

In a response to his divorce filing, TMZ initially reported the Life in the Fab Lane star requested that Leissner receive primary legal and physical custody of their son. When the convicted investment banker filed a divorce petition in April, he sought joint legal and physical custody of their 11-year-old son. As TMZ has now learned, that was a clerical error and Simmons has enjoyed primary custody of their son since 2020.

Simmons and Lessiner married in 2014 and legally separated in 2022. Simmons, who has four children, was previously married to Def Jam Records co-founder Russell Simmons from 1998 to 2009.

The model and fashion entrepreneur also asked the court to halt any possibility of her paying support to Leissner but rather that her estranged husband pay spousal support to her. She also requested that Leissner cover her legal fees from the divorce proceedings.

Simmons’ request does not align with what Leissner sought when he initiated the split. His April petition had requested spousal support from Kimora and asked the court to terminate her ability to collect alimony from him. He signed the divorce paperwork on February 4, just two days before surrendering to a Pennsylvania federal facility to begin his sentence for his involvement in a 2018 embezzlement scheme. The former Goldman Sachs executive pleaded guilty in 2018 to charges connected to the 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) controversy. Leissner is set to remain incarcerated until late September 2027.

Last December, Simmons described herself as the “primary parent” to her children, including a bonus, nonbiological son, in an interview with People. Along with Wolfe, Simmons shares two daughters, Ming, 26, and Aoki, 23, with Simmons, and a 17-year-old son, Kenzo, with actor Djimon Hounsou.

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