Last month, we reported that reality television star Kim Kardashian had filed for divorce from her husband, professional basketball player Kris Humphries, just 72 days after their televised $10 million nuptials. Now, Humphries has fired back, filing for legal separation and annulment, and asking a California family court judge to invalidate the couple's prenuptial agreement.

According to documents filed in Los Angeles Superior Court, Humphries filed for annulment on the grounds of fraud, essentially alleging that Kardashian tricked him into marrying her for the television wedding and subsequent payday. Entertainment news outlets are reporting that Humphries is seeking annulment instead of divorce for religious reasons. However, his attempt to invalidate the prenup indicate that his finances, not his religion, may be behind this move.

In general, annulments are fairly uncommon. Because they completely invalidate the marriage altogether, they are only granted in a handful of rare situations. These include situations in which the marriage was procured by fraud or false pretenses, when one or both of the parties was under the legal age of consent (usually 18, unless their parents give consent), when one or both of the parties was already married, or when one or both of the parties was not of sound mind or was physically unable to consummate the marriage.

Humphries is also attempting to have the couple's prenuptial agreement invalidated. He is reportedly doing so in order to no longer be bound by the document's confidentiality clause so he can speak publicly about the marriage and the divorce. The annulment and prenup filings are related, sources say, because Humphries believes that if the marriage is invalidated, then the prenup will no longer control what happens in the wake of the couple's split.

It remains to be seen whether either of these filings is successful. We will continue to update our blog with any new developments.

Source: Los Angeles Times, "Kris Humphries: Annul it, void it, just make it all go away," Dec. 2, 2011