Charlie Sheen has had his fair share of legal troubles in his life but, fortunately, it seems as if he may have avoided another child support battle with two of his ex-wives. Charlie Sheen: Brooke and Denise Accept Radical Reduction in Child Support, by TMZ Staff, August 28, 2016, tmz.com. Sheen had been paying Brooke and Denise each $55,000/month in child support for the two children he has with each of them. Apparently, Sheen's income isn't what it used to be and that, combined with other legal claims against him, make it difficult, if not impossible, for him to meet these child support obligations. However, rather than turn this into a nasty court battle, Sheen has reached a settlement with both of his exes, agreeing to pay them each $25,000/month in child support.
Why would Denise and Brooke agree to such a radical reduction without a fight? According to the article, "Brooke and Denise both knew if Charlie went to court for a reduction in support a judge would drop the payments to $10k a month, or maybe even lower." So why would Charlie settle if a judge would likely reduce his obligation even more? For one, settling save attorney's fees for everyone involved. In addition, there is no guarantee that his obligation would be lowered even more. For Brooke and Denise, they also save attorney's fees and they know they are getting a child support amount that will work for their families. If there is no settlement, all parties take a risk by letting a judge decide.
This case shows the benefits of settling rather than letting a judge determine your case. When you settle a case, you know exactly what you're getting. If you go in front of a Judge, you never know what will happen. Yes, you could get significantly more than the settlement amount, but you could also get significantly less. Settling takes the guessing out of it and allows the parties to agree to something that they both can live with, even if they are not completely satisfied.