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The separation of actress Lori Loughlin and designer Mossimo Giannulli after nearly 28 years of marriage is quickly evolving from a quiet breakup into a high-stakes financial war.
While the couple’s representatives confirmed the separation, stating they are "living apart and taking a break," sources close to the family tell us the delay in filing for divorce is intentional: Loughlin’s legal team is meticulously preparing to challenge a decades-old prenuptial agreement that could severely limit her access to the couple’s estimated $80 million net worth.
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Lori Loughlin and Mossimo Giannulli pictured together before their reported separation. Sources say the actress is “devastated” as the couple’s marriage faces new challenges.
The separation, announced this month, marks the final and most devastating fallout from the 2019 college admissions scandal that saw both Loughlin and Giannulli serve time in federal prison.
While the couple presented a unified front during their sentencing, the strain of the ordeal—and the subsequent divergence in their personal recoveries—proved irreparable.
The catalyst for the split was reportedly Lori's deep disappointment that Mossimo did not make "fundamental changes" to his lifestyle and behavior following their respective releases.
Having focused heavily on rebuilding her reputation and career, Loughlin found herself increasingly alienated from her estranged husband, ultimately leading to their decision to sell their $16.5 million Hidden Hills mansion in a final sign of dissolution. With both daughters, Olivia Jade and Isabella Rose, now adults, there are no custody concerns, leaving property division as the sole, explosive battleground.
The central issue is the prenuptial agreement signed by the couple in November 1997. Sources confirm the existence of an "iron-clad separate property clause" that is giving Lori’s legal team nightmares.
At the time of their marriage, Mossimo’s eponymous clothing brand, Mossimo, was already a massive success and he was estimated to be worth over $100 million, making him the significantly wealthier party.
The prenup was structured to protect that pre-marital wealth as his separate property. This distinction is critical in their California divorce proceedings.
If the 1997 prenup remains valid and enforceable, Lori Loughlin could be blocked from claiming any appreciation on that massive initial capital base, even if the appreciation occurred during the marriage.
Furthermore, it could significantly restrict her claim on assets acquired after 1997 if they can be traced back to Mossimo's separate funds. The agreement is said to contain strict terms regarding spousal support (alimony), a standard feature in high-net-worth prenups designed to allow both parties to keep their respective business interests and earnings.
Loughlin’s strategy is not to contest the facts of their community property (assets acquired together during the marriage), but rather to challenge the legality and enforceability of the entire 1997 document.
Arguments being prepared by her legal counsel may center on whether the agreement was properly disclosed, if it was revised or rendered void by subsequent agreements, or if its terms have become unconscionable over their nearly three decades together.
The former Full House star is reportedly determined to secure a fair financial settlement that reflects her contributions to their family and her own significant earnings over the last 28 years.
Until her legal team feels confident they can weaken the binding power of the 1997 document, all official divorce filings will remain on hold, signaling that this celebrity separation is just getting started. The fight for the Giannulli fortune promises to be one of the messiest and most expensive Hollywood battles in years.
According to Los Angeles family law attorney Samuel R. Williamson of Williamson & Associates, “a prenuptial agreement in California can set out how assets and spousal support will be handled, but it cannot predetermine child custody or child support. Those decisions are always made later by the court, based on the best interests of the child — no matter what the parents agreed to before marriage.”
