The Biggest Red Flags In Yolanda Hadid And David Foster Relationship

When Yolanda Hadid joined Real Housewives of Beverly Hills in 2012, she was Yolanda Foster, wife of music legend David Foster. To viewers, they seemed like a lovey-dovey couple who put a lot into keeping their relationship fresh, like when Hadid roasted a chicken while wearing lingerie during a 2014 episode. A year later, the news broke that the Fosters were going their separate ways. At the RHOBH reunion, Andy Cohen asked Hadid, "Did you feel blindsided?" She said, "Yeah. I didn't think that that was the end of the road. I would have hoped to wait until I got 100% well," in reference to her Lyme disease diagnosis. 

It appeared that Foster was the one who wanted the divorce, but "it's hard to believe that Yolanda didn't see this coming, but it could be that David was always distant and Yolanda just didn't know the difference," Stephen L. Cawelti, APC, an award-winning divorce lawyer in Los Angeles, told Nicki Swift. Cawelti added, "Yolanda frequently talked about feeling trapped in the marriage," which was something she mentioned in her 2017 book Believe Me: My Battle With the Invisible Disability of Lyme Disease. "David also has admitted that he's a 'runner' when it comes to relationships" Cawelti acknowledged. In the 2020 documentary David Foster: Off the Record, the producer admitted, "When things get rough or bad, rather than working it out, I run."

Whether or not Hadid saw the split coming, however, did not play a factor in their divorce proceedings.

While Yolanda Hadid has maintained that she was surprised by David Foster's decision to end their marriage, they were married in California, which is a "no fault" state, according to Stephen L. Cawelti, APC, an award-winning divorce lawyer in Los Angeles. He explained, "This means that the spouse that is asking for the divorce does not have to prove that the other spouse did something wrong. It also means that it only takes one party to finalize a divorce; the other party cannot stop it."

Cawelti said "springing the news on Yolanda has no legal ramification." However, "it could have had huge interpersonal ramifications for David." She could have hired a "pitbull attorney to drag him through the court system," which is a "scenario that happens frequently, especially among celebrities," per Cawelti. However, the details surrounding the dissolution of their marriage remained pretty private, with Cawelti remarking, "From the looks of it however, Yolanda and David seemed to maintain a level of mutual respect for each other throughout the entire process, even as their marriage crumbled."

In 2015, Us Weekly reported that Yolanda Hadid and David Foster split after four years of marriage and "9 beautiful and joyous years together." The exes stated, "During that time we experienced love, friendship and the inevitable challenges that come with managing a marriage, careers, blended families and health issues." Los Angeles divorce lawyer Stephen L. Cawelti said, "To me, the first red flag in Yolanda and David's relationship was their vastly different lifestyles and priorities," deeming their marriage as "one of opposites."

Cawelti elaborated, "David had to travel for work, all over the globe. Yolanda liked to remain home a lot, and even more so shortly after the wedding when she got her Lyme disease diagnosis. The story of the jet-setter and the homebody often doesn't end well, even under the best of circumstances."

Even so, the public will probably never know what actually sparked the split, with Cawelti saying, "David certainly isn't giving any hints. He's famously said he will never tell the real reasons for the breakup." People reported that Foster denied leaving Hadid because she had Lyme disease in his documentary David Foster: Off the Record. He insisted, "It was for a different reason — which I will never disclose — that had nothing to do with her being sick," which could be an ominous sentiment. Or perhaps, it's just a simple case of opposites not actually attracting. 

Despite their celebrity status, Yolanda Hadid and David Foster had a low-key divorce. Los Angeles divorce lawyer Stephen L. Cawelti said, "Yolanda and David were smart, and kept their divorce proceedings out of court." Instead, they "had all the financials done and a full settlement submitted to the court" within a year. Cawelti acknowledged, "Settling out of court is the best and least dramatic way to handle a divorce, and it's the way a lot of high profile couples resolve their marital conflicts."

Cawelti said, "Yolanda and David were able to keep their divorce out of court due in large part to the mutual respect that they still have for each other. Even as their marriage fell apart, they did not despise each other and were committed to compromise." Cawelti said that celebrities "can learn from David and Yolanda's situation," sharing that "when getting a divorce, a good dose of mutual respect and compromise will allow both parties to maintain their privacy and escape their divorce with less drama." And, instead of giving the public drama to consume, now their fans are just left with an unsolved mystery about what went wrong in their marriage.