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Artem Chigvintsev and Nikki Bella are about to start a new chapter in their lives ... because we've learned they've settled their divorce.

According to new legal docs, obtained by TMZ, Artem and Nikki went to mediation earlier this month and hammered out a divorce settlement.

Our sources tell us Artem and Nikki decided to quickly settle their divorce because they both want to move on, in part because it was getting very expensive to pay lawyers ... plus the whole process was becoming emotionally draining.

Killer mom Susan Smith will not taste freedom after her plea to a parole board was unanimously denied following an emotional hearing.

The controversial convict, who has spent nearly 30 years behind bars for the drowning of her sons, Michael and Alex, appeared before a parole board in South Carolina via a video call Wednesday ... tearfully begging those hearing her case to let her go free. Michael was 3 years old and Alex was 14 months old when Smith killed them.

As Smith relayed in her testimony ... she now knows what she did "was so horrible" and claims she'd "give anything to go back and change it."

Diddy is being sued for more alleged sexual assaults ... with the alleged victims claiming they were drugged ... but he's denying it all.

Tony Buzbee, the Texas attorney representing more than 120 alleged Diddy victims, just filed five new lawsuits against the Bad Boy Records founder.

In one suit, obtained by TMZ, a woman from Maryland claims she was 18 years old in 2001 when Diddy sexually assaulted her outside a Halloween party in New York City.

Donald Trump's win on Election Day is postponing the conclusion of his historic legal loss -- Manhattan D.A. Alvin Bragg wants a judge to put the president-elect's sentencing on a back burner ... until 2029.

Bragg announced Tuesday he's recommending Trump's 34 felony count conviction -- related to the hush money payments to Stormy Daniels -- be put off until Trump is out of office.

In a letter to the judge, Bragg says, "The People deeply respect the Office of the President, are mindful of the demands and obligations of the presidency, and acknowledge that Defendant's inauguration will raise unprecedented legal questions."

Diddy's sons are waging their own legal battle now, warning the man who's hawking a Kim Porter book -- allegedly based on her diary -- to shut it down or face a lawsuit.

Christian and Quincy Combs, fired off a cease and desist letter to a guy named Courtney Burgess and his attorney Ariel Mitchell over "Kim Porter Tell It All ('Tell It All')" ... a book currently sold online under the pseudonym Jamal Millwood.

In the letter, obtained by TMZ, the Combs bros say they became the rightful heirs and owners of Kim's intellectual property rights following her death in November 2018 ... and therefore her purported diary entries belong to them.

California Governor Gavin Newsom has kicked the can down the road in the direction of the new L.A. County District Attorney ... regarding Erik and Lyle Menendez.

Newsom's office just released a statement ... "The Governor respects the role of the District Attorney in ensuring justice is served and recognizes that voters have entrusted District Attorney-elect Hochman to carry out this responsibility. The Governor will defer to the D.A.-elect's review and analysis of the Menendez case prior to making any clemency decisions."

As we reported, the outgoing D.A., George Gascón, has supported resentencing Erik and Lyle and is in favor of their release. The newly-elected D.A., Nathan Hochman, has said he won't weigh in on how he wants to proceed until he fully reviews the case.

A hearing is set for December 11, where a judge will hear arguments on whether to re-sentence the Menendez brothers ... and that could trigger a parole board hearing that could set them free.

TMZ broke the story ... Erik and Lyle's lawyer, Mark Geragos, will ask the judge to change the conviction from murder to manslaughter. Since Erik and Lyle have served 3 times the maximum sentence for manslaughter, they would be immediately free men.

Diddy was trying to influence witnesses and the prospective jury of his peers while behind bars, so say prosecutors who filed legal docs in an attempt to justify raiding his jail cell.

As we reported, the feds raided Diddy's cell late last month and, according to Diddy's lawyer, Marc Agnifilo, seized attorney-client privileged material from his cell and gave it to prosecutors.

The U.S. Attorney's Office begs to differ, and in new docs, obtained by TMZ, Diddy used unauthorized methods of communication to get third parties via 3-way calling on monitored phone lines, use of other inmates' phone access codes, and use of a third party text messaging providers. In short, prosecutors say Diddy was trying to rig his trial.

Tony Buzbee, the Texas attorney repping more than 120 of Diddy's alleged victims, is firing back at a lawsuit accusing him of extortion ... he says he won't be intimidated or have his clients silenced.

Here's the deal ... Buzbee is being sued by a prominent individual identified only as "John Doe," who claims Buzbee is shamelessly trying to shake him down by threatening to file a lawsuit packed with false allegations related to alleged sexual assaults at Diddy parties.

Buzbee and his law firm aren't backing down, though, and he tells TMZ ... "We won't allow the powerful and their high-dollar lawyers to intimidate or silence sexual assault survivors."

The suspect accused of murdering Laken Riley had no answers for the scratches and marks on his arm, it's been revealed in court -- where gut-wrenching body cam audio was also heard, of a cop desperately trying to save the nursing student’s life in February.

The trial continued in Athens, Georgia, on Monday, with the court viewing body cam footage of Jose Ibarra -- an undocumented Venezuelan immigrant -- pointing at his arms and wrist while chatting in Spanish with a University of Georgia police officer.

Cpl. Rafael Sayan testified Ibarra first claimed there was nothing on his arm -- but then switched it up, pointing at his wrist and saying, “Oh, it’s just a scratch.”

A prominent figure is suing the lawyer repping more than 120 of Diddy's alleged victims, saying the attorney is "shamelessly attempting to extort exorbitant sums from him," while threatening a lawsuit packed with "wildly false horrific allegations" if he doesn't pay up.

The plaintiff, identified only as "John Doe," filed his own lawsuit in L.A. County Superior Court Monday morning ... describing himself as a "high profile individual" who knew Diddy and attended events along with the mogul. He's being repped by one of the premier law firms in the country -- Quinn Emanuel.

The man says attorney Tony Buzbee and his firm threatened to unleash "entirely fabricated and malicious allegations of sexual assault -- including multiple incidents of rape of a minor, both male and female -- against Plaintiff if he refuses to comply with their demands." The suit goes on to say Buzbee's demand letters alleged the plaintiff raped the males and females while they were under the influence of drugs ... at parties hosted by Diddy.

Diddy performed a bird sacrifice hours before he was acquitted on all charges related to the infamous 1999 club shooting with Shyne ... at least according to Diddy's former bodyguard.

The story, as told in a new Hulu documentary about Shyne, goes like this ... Diddy was on his way to court to learn the verdict in his shooting case when he had his driver make a pit stop in Central Park.

A man was waiting for Diddy and when Diddy approached the guy, Diddy dropped to his knees ... and smoke started swirling around Diddy. The bodyguard, Gene Deal, thinks the burning substance was sage.

Kanye West is being sued for his sex life and fashion choices ... and we discuss it all on this edition of TMZ TV Hot Take.

Check out the clip from "TMZ Live" ... Harvey and Charles break down the latest lawsuit against Ye.

Basically, a former employee claims Kanye summoned him to a couple hotel room meetings where he took breaks to go bang Bianca Censori ... and came out of the sex romp room wearing some Nazi gear.

Check your local listings for when TMZ is on in your area or catch up on past episodes!

Diddy is getting creative behind bars to sway a potential jury in his favor -- and he's even used his recent birthday celebration to obstruct justice in his federal criminal case, prosecutors say.

According to new legal docs, obtained by TMZ ... federal prosecutors say Diddy -- who is currently behind bars -- recruited family members to plot and execute a media campaign around his 55th birthday earlier this month for the purpose of influencing a jury at trial.

--You may recall ... Diddy's 7 kids posted a gushing Instagram video tribute to the music mogul and they let baby Love take center stage in the singing of "Happy Birthday." The children also wrote in the caption, "Happy Birthday Pops, we love you! 🎂❤️."

Malcolm X's family is going after the federal government in a new lawsuit ... alleging the feds played a key role in the civil rights leader's 1965 assassination.

Three of Malcolm X's daughters filed the suit Friday on their own behalf and on behalf of his estate, claiming the CIA, FBI, DOJ and NYPD all participated in a wide-ranging conspiracy behind their father's shooting death.

In the docs, obtained by TMZ, the family claims these agencies also engaged in a decades-long coverup after Malcolm was gunned down on February 21, 1965 at the Audubon Ballroom in Manhattan.

A Frontier Airlines passenger claims he was left with severe burns and "disfiguring" scars on his privates after a scalding cup of hot water spilled on his lap ... detailing the extent of his alleged injuries in a new lawsuit.

In a court document obtained by TMZ ... the man, named Sean Miller, says he was flying home to Pennsylvania from South Carolina in September, when the hot water brought to him for a cup of tea ended up spilling onto his crotch region.

Miller claims the water was given to him in a "highly negligent fashion," noting the cup was filled to the brim with piping hot water.

David Eason has been arrested after allegedly violating a domestic violence restraining order and trespassing on public land in North Carolina last week.

TMZ has obtained Eason’s mug shot ... showing the reality TV star unsmiling, black T-shirt on and hands held in front of him.

Eason was held on $1,000 bond ... but, it appears he's paid it and has since been released.