Michael Avenatti’s estranged wife labeled the famed lawyer ’emotionally abusive’, ‘hot-tempered’ and ‘angry and vindictive’ in court documents last year, it has been revealed.
Avenatti, who represents Stormy Daniels, is in the process of divorcing his wife of seven years, Lisa Storie.
The pair began proceedings in November, when Storie filed in Los Angeles before having her petition dismissed. It was later moved to a court in Orange County and Avenatti was the one who filed the papers.
In one document which was obtained by Fox News this week, Storie described an incident at their $17million home where she said her ex-husband became ‘verbally aggressive’.
She has since retracted her description of him and said the pair are trying to divorce civilly and in private. She said there had never been any form of abuse – physical, emotional or verbal – between them and described him as a ‘good man’ of whom she has never been afraid.
Avenatti has also told DailyMail.com that he never abused his wife, the mother of his son, in any way.
The court document reads: ‘[Avenatti] is hot tempered and used to having his way – when he doesn’t he gets extremely loud and verbally aggressive. ‘
Lisa Storie (left) is Michael Avenatti’s estranged, 47-year-old wife. She said in court documents that Avenatti is ‘verbally aggressive’ and ’emotionally abusive’
It goes on to describe an incident on December 17 when he arrived at their home to find Storie had changed the locks on their home.
‘I offered for him to be with [their son] for 9am to 7pm with a nanny present. He took umbrage with the request, showed up with his 15-year-old daughter and demanded access to the house…he immediately started yelling at me,’ she said in the documents.
In her statement this week – after telling Fox News that she was frustrated that their divorce had not yet been finalized – Storie painted her estranged husband differently.
‘Michael has in the past been a loving and caring husband and is a loving and caring father. I never called the police because I was never threatened with harm. I never sought to have him excluded from our home because I felt threatened or feared for my safety or that of my son.
‘Further, he has paid all child support and spousal support. He is a good man.
Storie added that journalists were trying to ‘harm him’ with a ‘defamatory story that has no basis in reality’.
Avenatti told DailyMail.com last week: ‘There was never any abuse, alleged or otherwise, by me in my relationship with my wife.’
‘There are a host of things that I could disclose relating to Lisa, her habits and the circumstances around her filing but I will decline to do so at this time as she is the mother to my son and I do not think it is appropriate to malign her,’ he added.
Last week, Storie told Fox News: ‘I need to be divorced and if [Michael Avenatti] continues to paint the narrative, he can ignore our case! Everyone reports we are divorced. That does not help my goal to get a divorce.
The narrative she was referring to was her ex’s ongoing pursuit of President Trump and Michael Cohen on behalf of Daniels who says she slept with Trump in 2006 and who took $130,000 from his attorney to keep quiet about it before the election.
Avenatti has led a media campaign on her behalf and is dogged about keeping his case in the headlines.
It has cast a long shadow over his ongoing divorce from Storie, 47, who lives Newport Beach, California. Avenatti filed for divorce himself in December in Orange County.
Their next court date is in July. So far, she has changed lawyers once. Last week, he told DailyMail.com his wife’s claims were ‘ridiculous’, saying: ‘Nothing has been delayed.’
His wife previously filed in Los Angeles but the case was dismissed in November.
Her reasons are unknown but on Friday she demanded: ‘Tell me where our money and his time has been spent.’
Storie said she would be ‘happy’ for her husband to move on with a ‘nice woman’ like Christie Brinkley, who he was tangibly linked to, but threw shade on his famous, Trump-bashing client.
Storie is the founder of the swimwear line Ikaria Resortwear, a celebrity-adored clothing line. She is running a loss on the business and has personal expenses of $25,000-a-month, according to their divorce records
Michael Avenatti, his estranged wife claims, is ‘painting the narrative’ of his case on behalf of porn star Stormy Daniels. His ex says porn stars are not his type and there is nothing going on between the pair but she will not reveal the reason for their divorce
‘I’d be more than happy if he dated a nice woman.
‘Better than porn stars,’ she said, hastily adding that there was nothing romantic between her husband and Daniels.
‘Porn star is not his type if that’s what you want to know. No story here except what you see on TV,’ she added.
Since Avenatti filed in December, the pair have been batting back and forth in court and the fight has laid their extravagant lifestyle bare.
The street view of Avenatti’s home in Newport Beach is shown with his Mercedes G Wagon. It backs onto a lake. According to real estate records, it sold at the start of the month for $17million
Storie is Avenatti’s second wife. They married in 2011 before she founded her resortwear line
Storie will not say what prompted her to change the locks on their home and throw her husband out last year
In previous court documents, it was claimed that he spends $40,000-a-month on Ferrari Spyder, Mercedes G Wagon, a private plane and its pilot, and trips to a MedSpa where he spends $1,000.
The pair lived together in Via Lido Nord, Newport Beach, in a sprawling, waterfront home which sold at the start of the month for $17.25million.
Beforehand, they were paying $100,000 a month to keep it and $14,000 a month for an apartment in Los Angeles, the court papers reveal. Storie also spends thousands a month at a MedSpa, the documents claimed.
Her business, Ikaria Resortwear, is making a loss despite being adored by reality TV stars and Instagram stars.
Storie’s personal expenses total $25,000 a month and include cash for shopping, gifts and socializing, along with $12,000 a month on nannies for their three-year-old son.
At an event for her swimwear line in October last year, she proudly sported her large engagement and wedding rings.
There, she posed with former Real Housewives of Miami stars to have her photograph taken.