Kelly Clarkson’s divorce battle with ex-husband Brandon Blackstock continues. On March 14th, Page Six reported that Kelly was suing Brandon for the second time in an LA court.
Page Six confirmed that Kelly’s court complaint was filed on March 11th. In it, she’s accusing Brandon of violating labor laws in California by acting as her “unlicensed talent agent” during their marriage.
Labor laws in California that regulate the entertainment industry are fairly strict. According to Page Six, “Only talent agents, with a few exceptions, are supposed to ink employment deals for their clients.”
Kelly’s complaint also names her ex-father-in-law (and Reba’s ex-husband), Narvel Blackstock, in the lawsuit. Narvel owns a management company called Starstruck Entertainment that employs Brandon, who had represented Kelly before and during their marriage.
Brandon allegedly violated the Talent Agencies Act in California when he began booking “business deals on her behalf” during their marriage without holding a talent agent license in the state. Also, Starstruck Entertainment had allegedly been serving as Kelly’s unlicensed talent booker as far back as 2007.
This Is Not the First Time Kelly Has Sued Brandon
Page Six obtained a copy of Kelly’s lawsuit on March 14th. The lawsuit reads that Starstruck is accused of “wrongful acts and conduct.”
The lawsuit also claims that “all agreements between the parties should be declared void and unenforceable.” In layperson’s terms, Kelly is suing Brandon and Starstruck for the money previously paid to them for acting as her allegedly unlicensed talent agent. According to Page Six, Kelly wants the payments returned for profits, advances, various fees, commissions, producing fees, and “other monies.”
The first time Kelly sued Brandon for professional reasons, she won a significant amount in her lawsuit. Page Six published an exclusive about it on November 30, 2023, reporting that Brandon was ordered to return millions of dollars to Kelly after a California labor commissioner ruled that he overcharged her as her manager during their marriage.
RELATED: Kelly Clarkson’s Ex-Husband Ordered to Pay Back $2.6M
In the ruling, Brandon was found guilty of overcharging Kelly $2,641,374 in management fees. Page Six claimed that Brandon would be seeking to appeal that ruling. Although Page Six claimed the exclusive on this story, they reported that TMZ was the first outlet to view and analyze the legal documents in the case brought before the labor commissioner.
TMZ reported on November 30th that they’d viewed the legal documents, which found Brandon guilty of acting unlawfully as Kelly’s manager when “he booked gigs and inked deals for Kelly on ‘The Voice,’ Norwegian Cruise Line, Wayfair,” and also when Kelly was named host of the Billboard Music Awards on three occasions.
Kelly was forced to accept one ruling from the labor commissioner that was not in her favor. She sued Brandon for “whatever percentage he pocketed after she scored her talk show.” Page Six reported that Brandon was allowed to keep that money.
Kelly Is Happily Single Right Now
On March 14th, Page Six confirmed that Brandon is currently appealing Kelly’s first lawsuit. Still, they reported that Brandon “will have a weaker argument” if Kelly wins her second lawsuit, “which covers 10 additional years than her former complaint.”
Brandon’s lawyer is Bryan Freedman, and Page Six shared a statement that Bryan had made to Rolling Stone. Bryan alleged that “it is morally, ethically, and legally wrong to attempt to get monies back from your ex-husband.”
Bryan also claimed that Brandon “helped” Kelly “as her manager.” Brandon allegedly “used those earnings on their children… during the marriage.”
However, Page Six reported that Brandon’s lawyer failed to mention that Kelly proceeded to counter-claim and sue Brandon after Starstruck sued her in 2020 for $1.4 million in “unpaid commissions” from “The Voice” and “The Kelly Clarkson Show.”
Kelly’s bitter divorce from Brandon was settled in March 2022. One of the most significant issues between them was custody of their children and ownership of their ranch in Montana. Page Six confirmed that Kelly was awarded “primary custody” of daughter River Rose and son Remy, and she got to keep her beloved Montana ranch.
In September 2023, Kelly shared some personal news on Instagram Live. She joked, “Do I have a boyfriend? No! And not looking. You know why? I love being single.”
Kelly explained, “I have two kids, two dogs, three rabbits, a hamster, multiple jobs—there’s a lot going on.” She added that it’s been hard for her to start over when she had thought that she was “going to spend the rest of [her] life with somebody,” and sadly, that’s no longer the case.
