Artem Chigvintsev Makes Legal Progress in Divorce Case with Nikki Garcia (Bella)
Artem Chigvintsev has walked away with his best-case scenario following a 2-hour hearing in his Nikki Garcia (AKA Bella) divorce case … TMZ has learned.
According to docs obtained by TMZ … the professional dancer and the retired WWE star had a hearing in the Napa County, California court Tuesday, where a judge ordered the exes to share custody of their son, 4-year-old Matteo.
This was certainly the outcome the “Dancing with the Stars” alum was hoping for … as he previously requested joint custody when he filed his divorce response in September.
Nikki, on the other hand, sought sole custody of Matteo when she filed for divorce … requesting Artem have supervised visitation with their son and undergo anger management classes.
TMZ broke the story … Nikki was granted a restraining order against Artem at the start of this month, after she detailed alleged abuse from her husband. Artem responded to the allegations with his own accusations, painting Nikki as the aggressor in their relationship.
While Artem was arrested for domestic violence at the end of August, the Napa County District Attorney decided criminal charges would not be filed against the dancer … noting they couldn’t “ethically file charges” at the time.
During Tuesday’s hearing, Artem testified he does not have anger issues … and it doesn’t look like the judge ordered anger management, although both parents will engage in individual therapy.
The judge DID order both Nikki and Artem to take parenting classes so they can better co-parent their little one.
Nikki and Artem’s divorce trial is set for December … and will take place over the course of 2 days.
Artem’s attorney Ilona Antonyan previously told TMZ … Artem denies ever tackling Nikki.
We’ve reached out to Nikki’s rep for comment … so far, no word back.