Kelly Rutherford (Photo : Reuters)
Blake Lively's "Gossip Girl" co-star Kelly Rutherford has been temporarily given sole legal and physical custody of her son Hermes, 8, and daughter Helena, 5. On May 22, a California judge ruled that her two children be brought back from Monaco to the United States.
Since 2012, Rutherford's children had been living with father Daniel Giersch in Monaco. Now, the children were ordered to return to Los Angeles, and Rutherford will keep their passports, according to a court order published in free electronic publishing platform Issuu.
On June 15, Rutherford, Giersch and their two children are required to be present in a hearing at the L.A. Superior Court.
Prior to the news that she was finally given custody of her children, Rutherford told People that Giersch would let her see the children after she arrived in France for her latest trip on May 21 only if she gave their U.S. passports to somebody who is "a neutral person," as his legal team called.
Rutherford's lawyer Wendy Murphy told the publication, "We are ecstatic, and hopeful that Monaco will respect the California court's ruling and send the children home."
"It has long been our position that Monaco has no jurisdiction because Hermes and Helena, as American citizens, have an absolute right to live in their own country," Murphy explained. "If the citizenship shoe were on the other foot and these children were citizens of Monaco, I have no doubt the United States would respect their right to reside in Monaco."
In the six-season television series "Gossip Girl," Rutherford played Lily van der Woodsen. She starred with Lively, Leighton Meester, Penn Badgley, Chace Crawford, Ed Westwick, Matthew Settle, Taylor Momsen and Jessica Szohr, among others.
