Katie Holmes Divorce: Tom Cruise Seeking Temporary Visitation of Suri, Sole Custody?
Tom Cruise is expected to make an appearance in a Los Angeles courtroom, where he will file for temporary visitation regarding his daughter Suri, just days after his estranged wife Katie Holmes filed for divorce.
The "Rock of Ages" actor, who recently celebrated his 50th birthday without his and Holmes' 6-year-old daughter, has hired a Los Angeles-based celebrity divorce lawyer Dennis Wasser despite the fact that Holmes filed for divorce in New York. Wasser has been instructed by Cruise to make getting temporary visitation rights of Suri a top priority, according to RadarOnline.com.
"Tom has told Dennis and Bert Fields, his long-time entertainment lawyer, that his first priority is getting a court order in place, obviously a temporary one, that will allow him to legally see his daughter," a source told Radar.
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"Team Cruise has extensive documentation to prove that Los Angeles is where the case should proceed, because this is where he says they have lived. Tom is extremely disappointed that Katie filed in New York, and he feels that she is trying to cut him out of their daughter's life. Tom won't tolerate it and told his lawyers that if he personally needs to go to court and make a plea in front of the judge for an order allowing him to see his daughter, he will. Suri knew it was his birthday on Tuesday, and she said she had made a card for him and made him a gift, and it just tore at his heart," the insider added.
Cruise, who was reportedly blindsided by Holmes' divorce filing, is also said to be exploring his options to potentially gain sole custody of Suri.
"Tom has faith in his lawyers, and the legal system. Tom is also discussing the possibility of pursuing full legal custody of Suri. Tom could make a very strong case because he raised his two adopted children, Bella, and Connor with Nicole Kidman. Tom was their main custodial parent," the source explained. "Tom is just at a loss as to why Katie would go to such extreme measures when she decided to file for divorce. Tom's lawyer will also request an order that Suri return to Los Angeles as soon as possible, and that she can't travel out of the state without each parent's prior approval."
The news comes just one day after it was revealed that Holmes, who is reportedly demanding sole custody of Suri, requested an "emergent application" to make her divorce trial from Tom Cruise public in the New York City court system.
The 33-year-old actress, who abruptly ended her 5-year marriage to Cruise June 28, is reportedly keen to have the divorce proceedings take place in New York and has already taken aggressive steps toward making this happen, according to Hollywood Life.
"Katie filed an 'emergent application' in New York City on July 3. It's a motion seeking temporary emergency relief, which can include child support and custody. It also means that Tom is going to have to hire a New York lawyer - he can't use his Calif. lawyer anymore," a source told HL.
Cruise is said to be in regular contact with Suri and the two are speaking "several times a day," a source said. He and Holmes are expected to appear before a judge in a New York court room on July 17.
