Heidi Klum, 47, and ex-husband Seal, have “come to the amicable agreement” in their battle over whether or not she could take their kids to Germany with her later this year, a source confirms to HollywoodLife.com on Aug. 27. Heidi has work duties in her homeland on Germany’s Next Top Model and wanted to bring their four children Leni, 16, Henry, 14, Johan, 13, and Lou, 10, along to be with her. After the 57-year-old singer’s initially objected to their kids traveling abroad during the coronavirus pandemic, he has agreed to her request for her children to live in Germany with her, while she completes filming of her show later in 2020.
Before the kids leave for Germany and upon their return home to L.A., Seal will get “expanded time” with them, according to the new agreement obtained by PEOPLE. The “Kiss from a Rose” singer is also allowed to visit the children in Germany at any time, and he and Heidi will “cooperate and work together to make arrangements for” his trips to see them, according to the publication.
As of now, the U.S. has not closed off travel from Germany, whose death rate from COVID-19 stands at 9,359, in comparison to the 180,000 dead and rising in the United states. Should the U.S. government move to close it’s borders, Heidi will have to “immediately make arrangements in an effort to return home with the children before the borders close,” according to the new agreement..
Heidi had asked for an emergency hearing after Seal initially refused to allow the kids to travel to Germany, and claimed in her motion that he didn’t see their kids that often, and that his “time” with their children was “sporadic at best.” The former couple split up in Oct. 2014, and while they share joint custody of their kids, Heidi claimed that they spend the majority of time with her.
Seal countered that, “I try to spend as much time as possible with our children when I am not working (including touring prior to the pandemic). Although I do not have a regular custodial schedule with the children, I have made it a point to be as involved in the children’s lives as I can.” He said that he feared the children leaving for Europe could have a “permanent impact” on their familial bond. Seal also claimed in paperwork obtained by HollywoodLife that, “Heidi is a celebrity and a German national and I am concerned that if she is allowed to take the children to Germany, she may unilaterally decide not to return them to the United States.”
While Germany’s Next Top Model usually films in the U.S., production on season 16 is staying put at home due to the worldwide COVID outbreak. Heidi had originally claimed that Seal — born Henry Olusegun Adeola Samuel — “had not yet approved of this trip,” and the America’s Got Talent judge said she was “well aware of all of the necessary precautions associated with the COVID-19 virus, and would never put our children at risk — I have taken all the precautions for Germany the same way I do in the United States.” Fortunately the pair has now been able to come to a reasonable and “amicable” agreement.
California Family Lawyer Kelly Chang tells HollywoodLife.com EXCLUSIVELY that it was wise for the pair to reach an agreement rather than going to court, but that Heidi had the better case. “The hearing means someone will lose. So it’s better to reach an agreement and set the terms of the agreement rather than leave it to some stranger. Here, Heidi’s requests were more than reasonable,” she tells us.