Gibbons (Nevada, Republican) divorce negotiations continue as Monday morning trial looms

[tonysam]

Gov. Jim Gibbons and his estranged wife, Dawn, are scheduled to let a judge resolve disputes over alimony and real estate Monday, as weekend negotiations for a settlement continued.

“It doesn’t look good,” the first lady’s lawyer, Calvin Dunlap, said tonight of the chances for a settlement, “but we’re having discussions now.”

The governor’s lawyer, Gary Silverman, said, “I’m in negotiations now” when reached tonight.

The trial scheduled at 9 a.m. Monday before Washoe Family Court Judge Frances Doherty is expected to take four days. The courtroom holds about 30 people, so seating will be limited, said Howard Conyers, court administrator.

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Earlier AP article:

In a normal year, Gov. Jim Gibbons would have time to spend the final week of 2009 plotting out his re-election run, looking to boost his dismal approval numbers and dealing with a gigantic budget deficit.

Gibbons will instead be in a Reno courtroom for a divorce trial opposite first lady Dawn Gibbons — the woman he evicted from the governor's mansion.

The trial will have no shortage of sizzle as it divides the spoils of a failed 23-year marriage and resurrects some of the scandals that have hounded Gibbons, including his alleged affairs with a Playboy model and a doctor's wife.

Some political observers say the proceedings will only cause more damage to a re-election bid that already is being condemned by some as a lost cause.

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Since the trial is scheduled for 9 a.m., I doubt I can get up early enough to go downtown.

[laughingliberal]

1. We can only hope his reelection bid is a lost cause

He has been a disaster for the state.

[tonysam]

2. That's putting it mildly. n/t

[laughingliberal]

3. Indeed. I am prone to understatement. nt

[tonysam]

4. Minutes before the trial is to begin

there is still NO resolution in the dispute:

link

It doesn't look like I am going to make it down to the courthouse today.

[tonysam]

5. A tentative settlement has been reached in the case

Same link as in previous post.

[tonysam]

6. Details

Update at 9:47 a.m.: Gov. Jim Gibbons and first lady Dawn Gibbons reached an 11th hour settlement agreement Monday morning, bringing an end to their 18-month battle to end their marriage and avoiding a potentially ugly public divorce trial as the governor embarks on a difficult re-election bid.

In reaching the agreement, Jim Gibbons agreed to sell the couple’s 40-acre property in Lamoille and split the proceeds with his ex-wife.


Settlement negotiations stretched late into the night Sunday, but the couple arrived at Washoe Family Court without an agreement. After about 30 minutes of continued negotiations, the couple entered the courtroom to announce they had resolved their disputes.


About a dozen onlookers sat in the gallery, along with local and national press.

link


Despite Gibbons' approval ratings skyrocketing from 14 percent to 19 percent, it appears Nevadans have been spared the embarrassment of a circus trial.

[tonysam]

7. Dawn Gibbons will be moving out of the Governor's Mansion and

will no longer be First Lady of the Silver State:

link

Here is a link to the list of the division of assets:

link