Halle Berry Objected. Her Son Can Address the Court

Caption: Halle Berry at Cannes, 2025. Credit: Harald Krichel, WikiPortraits / CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.

Halle Berry’s son will be allowed to testify in her dispute with ex-husband Olivier Martinez, despite her objection. The judge limited his testimony to the restraining-order request, according to court documents reviewed by PEOPLE, as the parents also contest custody arrangements.

Berry has denied Martinez’s allegations of abuse. Martinez is seeking sole custody; Berry wants their former equal arrangement restored.

A request, an objection and an order

Martinez filed his petition October 1, alleging abuse and requesting sole custody of Maceo. The court granted his request in part and denied it in part, PEOPLE reported; Berry’s visits were temporarily restricted.

On October 5, Berry filed a declaration denying that she had abused their son. “I am not a perpetrator of violence,” she said. “I would never hurt our child.”

The question of Maceo testifying emerged in documents PEOPLE obtained October 12. Martinez said their son wanted to address the court and give his own account during the hearings.

Berry objected in a filing the next day. She argued that Martinez was dismissing the accounts of other witnesses, including her fiancé Van Hunt and daughter Nahla, and said their son could be coached or manipulated.

PEOPLE reported that Nahla had stated in court documents that she had never seen her mother physically abuse Maceo. That account formed part of Berry’s argument for considering other witnesses alongside her son’s proposed testimony.

The judge nevertheless permitted Maceo to testify, according to the order reviewed by PEOPLE.

What each parent is seeking now

The equal custody arrangement Berry wants restored was part of the former couple’s August 2023 agreement.

PEOPLE’s October 17 account says Berry currently has unsupervised visits twice during the week and every other weekend. It also reports that she was required to attend a mediation session October 14.

The parents’ attorneys have sharply different descriptions of the case. Martinez’s lawyer, Patrick Baghdaserians, has said his client’s paramount concern is Maceo’s health, welfare and safety. Berry’s attorney, Marina Beck, has called the filing meritless and deliberately misleading.

Berry and Martinez welcomed Maceo in 2013. They filed for divorce in 2015 and finalized it in 2023, after a lengthy dispute. The current proceedings revisit arrangements reached at the end of that process.

The parents had also agreed to work with a co-parenting coach in May 2024 to resolve disputes, according to documents PEOPLE reviewed. That earlier agreement provides context for the ongoing difficulty reaching a workable arrangement for their son.

The next restraining-order hearing is scheduled for October 19, according to PEOPLE’s October 17 report.

References: Halle Berry Seen with Fiancé Van Hunt Ahead of Custody Hearing After Being Accused of Abusing 13-Year-Old Son | Halle Berry’s Son Maceo, 13, Allowed to Testify in Custody Trial After Actress Said She Believes He’ll Be ‘Manipulated’ by Ex | Halle Berry’s son cleared to testify in custody battle with ex-husband