Taylor Frankie Paul Just Got Some Encouraging News In Her Ongoing Custody Battle
Taylor Frankie Paul’s reality TV career may have stalled out — however temporarily — when her and ex-boyfriend Dakota Mortensen’s history of domestic violence caused a production shutdown on The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives, and Paul’s season of The Bachelorette was pulled rom ABC’s lineup. Her battles, however, have continued off-camera in regards to custody of the son she shares with Mortensen, and her latest court date resulted in some good news.
Commissioner Russell Minas ruled June 1 during a virtual hearing that Taylor Frankie Paul’s visits with her son Ever no longer require supervision, EW reports. The time she is allowed to spend with her 2-year-old has also been increased to one weekday (not overnight) and every other weekend. Dakota Mortensen maintains custody on holidays.
Back in March — three days before The Bachelorette Season 22 was set to premiere on the 2026 TV schedule, to be precise — footage from Taylor Frankie Paul’s 2023 arrest was leaked, and news of another domestic incident between her and Dakota Mortensen from February of this year came to light, prompting the courts to grant Mortensen full custody of their son Ever as well as a restraining order against Paul.
The MomTok leader was eventually granted 8 hours a week of supervised visitation with her son, which was increased to 12 hours a week on April 30. Having the supervision requirement dropped from the custody agreement is a huge win for Taylor Frankie Paul, who is likely to return to The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives now that production has resumed.
If both TFP and Dakota Mortensen plan to return to Hulu’s hit reality show, however, it will be interesting to see how that’s handled, because their mutual protective orders remain in place following their June 1 hearing. Both parties have been ordered to stay at least 100 feet apart for three years.
The former couple’s next hearing is set for July 8.
Does This Affect Taylor Frankie Paul’s Unaired Bachelorette Season?
With Taylor Frankie Paul scoring legal wins, the question remains as to whether this paves the way for ABC to air her already-filmed season of The Bachelorette. The network has seemingly kept things open-ended regarding Season 22’s fate, saying in their official statement that its release was merely paused:
We have made the decision to not move forward with the new season of The Bachelorette at this time.
After Taylor Frankie Paul learned that she would not face domestic violence charges in the February incident or a third incident that occurred in 2024, rumors started to spread that ABC may have an opening to air the season after all. Reality Steve and other reality TV experts continue to believe it will be released — possibly streaming with a Hulu subscription — sometime this summer.
Other reports, however, maintain that there are no plans to air the season and that The Bachelor franchise is looking at a “full reset,” including a much stricter casting process. Only time will tell, but it does seem like the victories are starting to add up for the Secret Lives of Mormon Wives star.
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