Richard and Alicia Stephenson married several decades ago and enjoyed a lavish life. Richard Stephenson was one of the founders of the Cancer Treatment Centers of America, and through his position with that business gained considerable wealth. The couple share one daughter but unfortunately decided to end their marriage with Alicia Stephenson moving out of the couple’s estate in 2007.

Since deciding to divorce the Stephenson’s have squabbled over the financial terms of their marital dissolution. Particularly, Alicia Stephenson has expressed her disagreement with the court’s ruling that a $6.5 million lump sum payment and monthly maintenance in the amount of $55,000 was not sufficient. She had requested that the court award her $400,000 per month from her ex to allow her to maintain her standard of living after their marriage ended. As a result she and her legal team have filed an appeal of the matter.

Richard Stephenson has won a motion to withhold his wife’s monthly alimony payments while the appeal is heard but this is not the first complication that the wealthy pair have encountered as they have worked to end their marriage. Alicia Stephenson had previously claimed that her ex hid assets during their divorce while Richard Stephenson alleged that his former wife was trying to extort money from him.

Divorces can be contentious and when complications arise they can become drawn out, difficult legal affairs. While not all Santa Rosa residents may be familiar with the wealth enjoyed by the Stephenson’s, they may relate to the challenges that individuals can face when ending a marriage. In order to receive the help that many individuals need it can be helpful to those who wish to divorce to consult with family law attorneys that they trust.

Source: chicagotribune.com, “Ex-wife of Cancer Treatment Centers founder appeals multimillion-dollar divorcer ruling,” Amanda Marrazzo, Dec. 14, 2017