Actress Kelly Rutherford files for bankruptcy

Actress Kelly Rutherford has filled for bankruptcy in the wake of a public custody battle with her ex-husband Daniel Giersch.

TMZ first reported the news after obtaining documents that show Rutherford, who has paid roughly $1.5 million in legal fees, filed Chapter 7 in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in California last month. In the documents, the former "Gossip Girl" star said she has $2 million worth of debt, with a current monthly income of $1,279.33.

Rutherford had been earning about $468,000 while working on the CW's "Gossip Girl," which had its series finale last fall.

In August 2012, a Los Angeles judge ruled that the former couple's children, Hermes, 6, and Helena, 4, would live with Giersch in France. The German businessman has been barred from traveling to the U.S. because of a revoked visa. He now calls France home, so Rutherford has had to travel frequently to see her children because Giersch can't enter the U.S.

During an emotional visit to "The View" last September, Rutherford opened up about a recent visit with her children: "It's just been crazy. My little girl said 'I want to come home, Mama, I want to come back to New York.' My son, who's kind of been brainwashed that where he is is so much better, always says, 'Mama, I love you so much. You're in my heart.'"

Rutherford and Giersch wed in 2006 and split two years later.