Lauren Manzo became a household name thanks to Caroline Manzo’s star power on the Real Housewives of New Jersey. As the youngest of three and the only girl, Lauren was a proud Jersey girl who loved her family. During the series, viewers watched as she fell in love with her brother’s best friend, Vito Scalia. The duo married in 2015, and the wedding was filmed for the spinoff Manzo’d With Children. However, the dream life has ended as Lauren has finalized her divorce.
Lauren Manzo’s marriage is over
After eight years of marriage, news broke that Vito decided to file for divorce from Lauren back in October of 2023. Viewers of the Real Housewives of New Jersey learned that the deli owner filed the divorce paperwork in September 2023. In the legal documents, the father of one noted, “The parties have experienced irreconcilable differences for a period of at least six months, which has caused the breakdown of their marriage, and it is apparent that the marriage should be dissolved as there is no reasonable prospect of reconciliation.” At the time, the two still lived in the same home they had bought together in 2016.
Before serving Lauren, he also filed the Marital Settlement Agreement in July. The MSA is a legal document that outlines the terms of a divorce. It’s also known as a Property Settlement Agreement. The pair share a seven-year-old daughter. Lauren quickly responded, telling fans, “By now, you guys have seen the news that has broken. I just want to let you guys know we’re all good. This has been done for a very long time. The last part of the process was filing. We were on the same page. This is something that we did together.”
Vito Scalia has a new girlfriend
Lauren went on to say, “All that matters to us is that our daughter is happy and healthy. Our privacy is important to us. We haven’t been on TV in seven years, which is why we did not feel the need for some dramatic announcement. And we continue to move forward with love and respect for each other. And we will always be a family, and that’s it. It’s about our daughter and her privacy because she didn’t ask to be on TV — we did,” Lauren concluded. With the statement fans quickly noticed that Vito had also moved on.
According to The Daily Mail, Vito had been dating Dominique Valenti. The Real Housewives of New Jersey alum started appearing on the entrepreneur’s social media in August 2023. It didn’t go unnoticed that Dominique often posts messages gushing about her new man. She recently gave a birthday shout-out to her new beau. It read, “Happy Birthday to the most amazing gift I ever received! You’re simply the best, and there is no other way to put it! Anyone that knows you loves you, and if they don’t … definitely their loss,” she wrote. “Thank you for being my best friend!”
Lauren Manzo and her divorce settlement
Recently, The Daily Mail reported that Vito and Lauren had finalized their divorce in November 2024, just one year after the paperwork was filed. A judge officially signed off on the judgment thanks to their Marital Settlement Agreement, which was “drawn up by both parties” back in July 2023. The document states “that both parties shall share joint legal custody with Markie’s primary residence being with Lauren and the ‘alternate residence’ being with Vito.” The former couple also agreed to “confer and consult with each other’ when it comes to all matters of their daughter Markie, and they agreed to work with a therapist, especially ‘to explain the divorce to the child.’”
Caroline will also help with the exchange of Markie when it comes to visitation. Albert Manzo and Caroline’s home in Franklin Lakes has been named the “exchange point for parenting exchanges,” according to the court docs. Each parent has agreed to a set of guidelines, including “providing the child with an emotional environment in which she is free to continue to love the other parent and to spend time with the other parent, encouraging a good feeling from the child about the other parent and relatives, refraining from fighting, arguing or degrading the other parent in the presence of the child, and presenting a united front on the handling of any problem in front of the child.”
Vito also agreed to pay Lauren $1,000 a month for child support. As for spousal support, Vito agreed to pay Lauren a “limited duration alimony in the amount of $4,000 per month for a period of 27 months.
The Real Housewives of New Jersey is available to stream on Peacock.
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