Siovaughn Funches Said Her Lawyer Failed Her Big Time In Divorce From Dwayne Wade
Dwayne Wade’s baby mama said her lawyer should’ve fought harder to get her a bigger divorce settlement deal from her ex, and pleaded with a judge to let her case against him go to trial.
Siovaughn Funches said her former lawyer Brian Hurst’s “action and inaction” forced her to accept a lowball divorce payout from the Chicago Bulls player.
She received $5 million and the marital home, but said in court papers that she was entitled to much more, and would have gotten it if not for Hurst’s alleged legal negligence. The mom insisted she could have gotten more money – at least $10 million – but her lawyer never shared evidence of Wade’s business contracts, income that she felt she was entitled to because he earned that money while they were married.
Funches sued Hurst for legal malpractice, claiming the lawyer botched her case and screwed her out of a higher settlement. A judge threw out Funches’ initial case against Hurst, but after Wade signed a two-year, $47.5 million contract with the Chicago Bulls, the judge ruled that she could amend her original complaint.
But Hurst said in court docs filed at Cook County Il. Superior Court that Funches doesn’t have the facts to back up her claims of Hurst’s alleged legal malpractice. The lawyer said the mother of three’s complaint was “littered” with allegations that her settlement would have been bigger had Hurst handled the case better, but doesn’t have any evidence to prove it. He asked the judge to throw the case out.
However, Funches spelled out how she said Hurst screwed her over in the divorce:
She said Hurst began settlement negotiations with Wade’s legal team without her knowledge and forced her to remain outside the conference room while they made the deal. Another bone of contention for Funches was that Hurst OK’d dismissing another case she had against Wade as part of the settlement deal.
Funches also said Hurst badly negotiated her divorce settlement, and then told her he wouldn’t agree to it, but went behind her back and did it anyway. In the end, Funches said she ended up with the marital home, which she said Wade paid more than what it was worth and was responsible for high mortgage and maintenance payments. The settlement also included a clause where Funches couldn’t talk about her marriage, something she said she strongly opposed.
She said instead of her ex-lawyer getting ready for trial, he began urging her to settle, and further, he ignored her specific settlement requests, like getting her law school tuition reimbursed, travel expenses to Florida to visit their two kids and getting the marital house appraised.
Funches asked the judge to let her bring her case to trial and dismiss Hurst’s request to throw it out. A judge has yet to rule on Hurst’s or Funches’ motions.
Wade has since had another child and married actress Gabrielle Union.
