After five ugly months, Tim Duncan's 12-year marriage is officially over. Tim and his college sweetheart, Amy, finalized the paperwork in a secret hearing that didn't take place in a courtroom and didn't show up on any docket—the judge paid a rare "house call" to get this done without the media taking notice.


Back in March, Amy filed for divorce, citing "discord or conflict of personalities between petitioner and respondent that destroys the legitimate ends of the marriage relationship." Duncan was not caught by surprise—he had reportedly hired a private investigator to explore Amy's relationship with a personal trainer—but he had hoped to wait until the NBA season was over to file his own petition. Instead, it became public just as the Spurs advanced to the finals.


The district judge who granted the divorce did so on his lunch hour, in a hearing held at the offices of Tim Duncan's lawyer.

Canales said it wasn't out of the ordinary for a judge to hold an on-the-record hearing off-site, though it was the first time he has been asked to do it. Notice of the hearing appeared nowhere on any public docket. Canales said that when a judge gets an agreement in a divorce case, it is not necessary to give public notice of a hearing. He added that the parties felt uncomfortable coming to court because of the possible “paparazzi” factor — people taking pictures of them or asking for autographs.

The terms of the Duncans' divorce agreement are not known.

Secret hearing marks end of Duncans' union [San Antonio Express-News]