“Give it Away:” Red Hot Chili Peppers guitarist John Frusciante receives favorable divorce settlement despite California’s often inequitable community property standard

 

This guest post is from Drew Fairbanks, Regent rising 3L and spring Family Law student:

 

John Anthony Frusciante, funk-rock virtuoso and principal guitarist for the Red Hot Chili Peppers, recently finalized his divorce in the state of California. Based on the Court’s initial order for temporary support and subsequent final order, it seems the court was inclined to sympathize with Mr. Frusciante—ultimately favoring him in the divorce proceedings.  

 

At the onset of his divorce, Frusciante was required to pay temporary support to his now ex-wife, Nicole Turley. Per California code, the Court’s initial inquiry for quantifying spousal support was determining “the extent to which the earning capacity of each party is sufficient to maintain the standard of living established during the marriage.” West's Ann.Cal.Fam.Code § 4320. In short, the Court will carefully access the supporting spouse’s financial means, and if possible, the subsequent order of support will be sufficient to keep the supported spouse in the “lifestyle in which he or she is accustomed to.” See id.

 

Considering Frusciante’s success as a musician, it is not surprising the California court required Frusciante to pay temporary support to Turley in the amount of $53,000 per month, $14,000 per month for rent and utilities, as well as a one-time payment of $71,000 for her legal fees. While this figure may seem excessive, it is objectively favorable to Frusciante considering his earning capacity and net worth. Moreover, the temporary support order in this case seems to be a standard figure in proportion to Frusciante’s earning capacity and Turley’s lavish lifestyle during their marriage.

 

John Frusciante joined the Red Hot Chili Peppers in 1988 at the age of 18 after the death of the band’s original guitarist, Hillel Slovack. Frusciante’s stint in the band yielded one certified gold album (Mother’s Milk (1988)) and four certified platinum albums (Blood Sugar Sex Magik (1991), Californiacation (1999), By the Way (2002), Stadium Arcadium (2006). Frusicante’s net-worth is estimated to be $25,000,000.

 

Despite Frusciante’s financial means and likely perpetual earning capacity (based on royalty payments), the Court’s final order only required Frusciante to make a one-time payment of $1.6 million dollars to Turley. Frusciante was allowed to keep all of his master recordings from the albums mentioned above, his solo works, and the royalty payments flowing from them. This final order seems generous considering California’s community property standard, where the court could have awarded Turley support that included a share in Frusciante’s royalty payments or shared ownership of his music recordings.

 

The Court may very likely have realized that John Frusciante is the golden state’s greatest guitar player. A final decree ordering anything more than a cash payoff might have been unjust, but this case makes it clear that the court has discretion in such matters.