Kelly Clarkson is claiming in new court documents that her estranged husband, Brandon Blackstock, operated illegally as her manager for years and should pay her back all the commissions and fees he received.
The singer claimed in an October petition filed with the California Labor Commission that Blackstock demanded "unconscionable fees and compensation" and acted "in conflict of interest with (her) best interests," among other alleged violations of the California labor code.
The 38-year-old singer claimed Blackstock was never a legally certified talent agent during the 13 years she was with his company, and that the agreement she struck with her ex and his father, Narvel Blackstock, be "declared void and unenforceable."
It also asked for the commission to order the Blackstocks to return all the money she paid them for their work as her talent reps.
The petition, which was filed on Oct. 20, was attached to a motion Clarkson's legal team filed in Los Angeles Superior Court recently asking them to halt a lawsuit the Blackstocks' company, Starstruck Management Group, filed against her in September.
In that suit, Starstruck claimed Clarkson owed the company $1.4 million in unpaid commissions for her work on "The Voice" and "The Kelly Clarkson Show" in 2020.
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Both Blackstock and Clarkson did not respond to TODAY's request for comment.
Bryan Freedman, a lawyer for Starstruck, told TMZ that Clarkson's labor petition "conveniently ignores the fact that Kelly had her own licensed talent agency CAA at all times. While Starstruck Management Group provided talent management services on her behalf, it did so at all times that CAA was her agency of record."
"It is unfortunate that Kelly is again attempting to avoid paying commissions that are due and owing to Starstruck to try and achieve some perceived advantage in her ongoing custody and divorce proceedings," he said.
The former couple share two children, daughter River Rose, 6, and son Remington, 4. Last month, Los Angeles Superior Court awarded Clarkson primary physical custody of the two kids.
In its ruling, the court cited Blackstock living in Montana while the kids live in Los Angeles as a primary reason for the decision, as well as the parents' relationship.
Clarkson originally filed for divorce in June, citing “irreconcilable differences” and requesting joint custody of their kids.
She opened up on TODAY in September about the difficulty of going through this process while in the public eye.
"I don't think anyone expects (divorce)," she told TODAY co-anchor Hoda Kotb. "You see yourself growing old with someone and then life has a different path, and it's so hard on everyone."
"We have four kids total together," the "American Idol" alum continued, referencing Blackstock's two kids from his previous marriage. "That's a lot of hearts involved, and you just have to be really careful. It's just a tricky thing to navigate. It's hard on everyone involved."
"Going through it, it's just a really difficult thing," Clarkson concluded. "It's just a rollercoaster of emotions. ... 2020 has been really hard on a lot of us, or really every human."
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