Alice Evans’ tumultuous split from actor Ioan Gruffudd has taken another dramatic turn as she accuses her ex-husband of failing to pay child support since May. Evans claims she is in such dire financial straits that she cannot afford to “put food on the table” and may be forced to apply for food stamps.
In legal documents filed by Evans’ lawyers on July 1, the 55-year-old actress states that she has “100 percent” custody of their two daughters, Ella, 14, and Elsie, 10. Despite this, she alleges that Gruffudd has not provided any financial support since their custody agreement was settled two months ago.
Evans asserts that while she is struggling to provide for their children, Gruffudd, 50, is living a “lavish lifestyle” with his fiancée, Bianca Wallace. She claims he has been “jetting around the world” and indulging in luxury items, including new Rolex watches and an expensive engagement ring for Wallace.
“While I am struggling to put food on the table for the children, Ioan is jet setting around the world,” Evans states in the documents. She further alleges that Gruffudd has been on a global press tour for the latest “Bad Boys” film, “Bad Boys: Ride or Die,” while she is on the brink of applying for food stamps.
Evans is asking the court to require Gruffudd to pay spousal and child support until their financial trial. She notes that the only payments agreed upon so far are $3,000 a month in interim child support, which she claims were not paid in May or June. Gruffudd also paid $7,000 a month as an advance of spousal support from December 2023 to April 2024. The financial issues were initially set to go to trial by April 2024 but have now been postponed to August.
“Alice is applying for public assistance because she is unable to support herself and the children,” her lawyer states in the latest legal filing. “It appears that the financial trial will be several months away, and Alice will not be able to survive without the receipt of guideline spousal support. Ioan has the ability to pay spousal support based upon his greater ability to earn income and his ongoing lavish lifestyle. For these reasons, Alice requests guideline child and spousal support.”
Her lawyer, Janina Verano, also claims that since May 2023, Gruffudd has not seen the children outside of reunification therapy nor has he “exercised his court-ordered right” to have a telephone call with them three times a week. Reunification therapy ended in February this year. “Ioan has not telephoned the children or returned their text messages since May of 2023,” Evans says. “The children have been left in limbo and are completely confused about when or if they will see Ioan.”
Evans also opposes Gruffudd’s request to seal their stipulation or custody agreement, accusing him of being “disingenuous” in his request to protect the children. She points out that he did not seek to seal any of the domestic violence or custody pleadings where he falsely accused her of abusing the children.
In the meantime, Evans says she has incurred legal fees of $112,000 and is in “dire” financial straits. “I cannot wait months for a trial to receive child support and spousal support,” she says, claiming that she currently makes around $300 a month in royalties and hopes to make further money by appearing at fan conventions. “I have drained all of my personal savings paying my prior attorneys in this case,” she writes, explaining that while she has some designer items held in storage that could be sold, she cannot pay the monthly storage fee. “As it stands, I am behind on rent and utility payments, and friends have started dropping off groceries and food so the children can eat. I will be applying for food stamps and welfare.”
Evans claims that Gruffudd earns tens of thousands of dollars a month, per his tax filings, and that he also received “approximately $390,000 from the sales proceeds of the home just in December 2023.” “In this case, a disparity in access to funds to pay fees exists because Alice earns only a few hundred dollars per month, while Ioan’s self-reported average monthly income on his Income and Expense Declaration filed January 24, 2024, is $21,023 for the 36 months ending December 31, 2023, and $18,264 for the 12 months ending December 31, 2023,” the legal filing states.
Evans also claims that her premarital agreement with Gruffudd is unjust because it allegedly states she will receive less money from her ex following their divorce than if they didn’t have children together. “This provision punishes me for having children, which I contend offends the public policy of the State of California that both parents are to contribute to the financial support of the children, especially in this case where I now have 100 percent custody of the children,” she says.
Evans and Gruffudd were married from 2007 to 2023. He filed for divorce in March 2021 and has since moved on with Wallace. Evans’ lawyers argue that she is “unable to be taken seriously for roles that require her to travel for long periods of time, as many acting roles do” because of Gruffudd’s public claims about her. “I have been making efforts to get back into the industry,” the actress points out. “For example, I am currently booking paid fan conventions for various different roles I have played in the past. I am not earning much now, but I am hopeful that with some hard work and the right opportunity, I can start financially supporting the children.”
Page Six has reached out to Gruffudd’s lawyer for comment but did not immediately hear back.
Source: DailyMail.com, Page Six
