Why Rachel Zoe Decided to File for Divorce From Rodger Berman After 26 Years of Marriage

Celebrity stylist and fashion icon Rachel Zoe is getting candid about the end of her 26-year marriage to Rodger Berman, revealing the dramatic moments that pushed her to finally file for divorce after being separated for almost a year.

During a recent episode of “The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills,” the designer announced that she had “filed for divorce” that same morning. “Just [a] typical day,” she pointed out sarcastically.

Zoe, 54, went on to explain that “it’s not one thing” that led her to file officially, but rather “an absolute myriad of bad decisions that have been made over the last month, the last weeks, the last f–king hour that would trigger me to move things forward.”

In a clip that was previously not scene, Zoe told fellow Housewife Erika Jayne that Berman had introduced his new girlfriend to the boys without warning Zoe ahead of time. The incident occurred at a particularly sensitive moment—as their sons were about to leave for camp.

“So you know that my ex has this girlfriend, right? She’s never met the kids. My kids are leaving, about to get on a plane to camp. Literally, she f–king appears,” she claimed. “She’s there with him and shows up and says hi to my sons.”

Rachel and Rodger confirmed that they were separating in September 2024 after 33 years together and 26 years of marriage. Rachel then filed for divorce in July 2025. The couple, who started dating in 1991 in college and married on February 14, 1998, share two sons: 14-year-old Skyler Morrison Berman and 12-year-old Kaius Jagger Berman.

“I was done. I was really done,” Rachel told PEOPLE of her September 2024 split from Rodger on December 31. “I don’t suffer from guilt of not having given it everything I could have. I don’t suffer from that, and I don’t suffer from feeling like it was a failed marriage. Having been married for 26 years, I would say that three-quarters of that was amazing.”

“I do not have a prenup with my ex,” she further revealed to a producer. “I don’t want to give spousal support, and I don’t want to get spousal support. I feel that this is a new beginning, and if we are separating and living separate lives with separate people, I don’t see why I should be paying for that, or he should be paying for mine.”

“The question I kept getting asked and still get asked is: ‘Why am I so okay coming out of a relationship that really transcended my entire adult life?’ It’s because I’m independent — financially, professionally and socially. I think that there isn’t enough emphasis put on the importance of that.” “You have to have your own things to wake up for every day,” she continued. “I think because of that, when I made the decision to leave my marriage, it was like, okay, next.”

“[I’m] absolutely dating,” she confirmed. “It’s incredibly fun. To be honest, that wasn’t hard for me to get into. It really wasn’t.” Rachel even celebrated her new chapter with a custom “divorce ring” from Ring Concierge, featuring a stunning three-stone diamond design.

Rodger spoke with Vanity Fair in December, where he shared an update on their ongoing divorce. “Separation is very amicable, and our relationship is in a great place,” he said. “I no longer have a girlfriend, we broke up.”