Claire Boucher, professionally known as Grimes, has launched a legal pursuit for the physical custody of her three children, involving an elaborate effort to serve Elon Musk, their father, with custody papers. The court filings, as per Insider’s findings, detail the extensive measures taken to reach the tech mogul.
Grimes’ legal team employed four process servers between October 13 and 20 to deliver the documents to Musk at various locations associated with him, including Tesla’s Austin gigafactory and SpaceX’s Boca Chica launch site. Their endeavors even extended to tracking Musk’s private jets and visiting a horse farm linked to him, but they met with repeated rebuffs.
Despite multiple attempts, direct service proved elusive, with servers often being turned away by security personnel. Ultimately, substitute service was employed, leaving the papers with employees at several of Musk’s businesses and mailing them on October 20.
California family lawyer Christopher Melcher told Insider that Grimes’ efforts, documented in a supplemental proof-of-service, likely meet the legal threshold, as substitute service is considered legitimate when direct attempts are sufficiently thwarted, particularly for high-profile individuals shielded by layers of security.
This legal drama occurs amidst the backdrop of a complex personal narrative. Grimes and Musk, whose intermittent romantic involvement began in 2018, have welcomed three children together, including a daughter in 2021 and a son in 2022. Despite their initial breakup in 2021, the pair continued co-parenting and even resided together in Austin temporarily.
The tension surfaced publicly in September when Grimes, in a now-deleted post, seemed to implore Musk to allow her to see their son, indicating legal entanglements. This followed Musk’s discreet action to “establish the parent-child relationship” with the children, a move preceding Grimes’ lawsuit.
Musk, known for his expansive ventures and now for having fathered 10 children with three women, has yet to formally respond to the lawsuit. His legal response, if aligned with the typical legal timeline following substitute service, is due by November 29.
The jurisdiction of the custody battle remains uncertain, with potential for a motion by Musk to shift the proceedings to Texas, where he initiated legal action against Grimes. Until the jurisdictional debate is settled, the matter may remain in a state of suspension.
Requests for comments from Musk and representatives for both parties were not immediately returned. As the situation unfolds, it highlights the complexities of high-profile custody disputes and the challenges posed when one party possesses significant resources and security measures.
