SAN JOSE – Before records were digitized, the case files of divorced couple Timothy Loumena and Wylmina Hettinga were 40 volumes long.
Now on disks, the reports reveal restraining orders, constant appeals and disagreements between the couple, which have officially claimed that Hettinga is a vexatious litigant.
It’s not over, Loumena told the Northern California Record after the May 12 ruling by Presiding Justice Conrad L. Rushing of the California Sixth District Court of Appeal. The justice and his associates settled the most recent matter between the two, which lasted 12 years. However, the end only ignited a new beginning, with Loumena already subpoening his ex-wife for financial records.
“I am going to be going back to court for that stuff,” he said.
The California couple fought over family property for more than a decade. Loumena said he is unsure why having the matter resolved took so long, claiming it was on the conference list for three years.
Instead of bearing a grudge, Loumena credits his ex-wife for her intelligence.
“She is really creative,” Loumena said. “She is very intelligent, yet [she] doesn’t see reality.”
By 2009, Hettinga is reported to have filed approximately 50 demands for family court orders, 18 appeals and seven lawsuits against Loumena, including five state and two federal suits.
According to Loumena, his ex-wife has even sued someone she requested personally.
“She requested the kids be appointed a court attorney and then she sued him,” he said. “She goes after anyone involved in any way.”
Loumena said vexatious litigants like Hettinga are the reason the courts are a mess.
“In our system of family court, if one person wants to mess it up, they can," he said. "I have tried to make an agreement every step of the way, and she fights everything."