Katie Holmes has filed for an emergency custody and child support hearing in New York. The 33-year-old actress - who began divorce proceedings against estranged husband Tom Cruise last week - requested an ''emergent application'' in New York City court yesterday to determine immediate custody and child support issues over the couple's six-year-old daughter, Suri.

The filing means Cruise - who is being represented by Dennis Wasser, one of Los Angeles' top divorce lawyers - must hire his own New York-based attorney and the couple must appear before Judge Matthew Cooper on July 17 in an open court.

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A source said: ''Katie filed an 'emergent application' in New York City on July 3. It's a motion seeking temporary emergency relief, which can include child support and custody. It also means that Tom is going to have to hire a New York lawyer - he can't use his California lawyer anymore. The motion also means that both Tom and Katie have to be present in court on July 17. A judge is now assigned to their case, which means it's no longer going to be an out-of-court settlement. They are scheduled to appear before Judge Matthew Cooper on July 17 at 9:30 a.m.''

Insiders believe Holmes - who married Cruise in November 2006 - took out the emergent application because she didn't think the 50-year-old actor would cooperate with her.

The source added to website Hollywoodlife.com: ''Katie doesn't anticipate Tom cooperating, and there have been rumors that he's going to file in California and argue that litigation should be there rather than New York. Bottom line: if you file an emergency motion, you don't believe there's going to be cooperation from the other party or you need an order that only the court can give. It might have something to do with trying to control the media. They filed under anonymous versus anonymous to avoid the media. Most celebs do that.

''It's unlikely for a celebrity to file an emergency hearing, because most celebrities settle out of court because they don't want the media involved in their case. Katie and Tom are now going to have an open court room, which means that anyone can walk in and see what's happening. Plus, they are putting their case in the hands of a judge who is going to determine what happens next. Most public figures don't want that - it's a last resort. It's super-aggressive for Katie to have taken these steps. It suggests that there's going to be a contentious divorce battle to come.''

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