Geena Davis Says She Was Never Legally Married to Reza Jarrahy Despite His File for Divorce

Geena Davis does not want to get divorced — because she says she was never married in the first place.

Reza Jarrahy, an Iranian-American neurosurgeon, filed for divorce from the Thelma & Louise star in May, TMZ first reported. In court documents obtained by PEOPLE, Davis, 62, responded that she and Jarrahy cannot get divorced since they were not legally married. The Blast was first to report on the documents.

Davis said that the duo “knowingly and voluntarily chose to have a marriage-like ceremony, fully aware that it was not legally binding.”

In her filing, Davis claimed that she and Jarrahy checked “single” on tax returns, did not own property as a couple and “never had a joint checking or savings account, never had a joint retirement account.” She also stated that Jarrahy did not receive health insurance through her SAG-AFTRA membership as he “does not qualify as a family member.”

Additionally in the court filing, Davis included a letter allegedly signed by Jarrahy in 2012 that stated, “I filed my tax returns in 2009 as a single individual because I am not currently married. Ms. Davis and I cohabitate and co-parent our three children but are not officially wed.”

According to court documents previously obtained by PEOPLE, Jarrahy blamed the split on irreconcilable differences and said that the couple separated on Nov. 15, 2017.

Jarrahy had asked for spousal support in a petition he filed Tuesday. He also asked the judge for joint legal and physical custody of the children and to deny Davis spousal support if she asked.

PEOPLE is out to Davis’ and Jarrahy’s reps for comment.

Davis and Jarrahy had the private marriage ceremony in the Hamptons on September 1, 2001. They announced in a statement at the time, “We are very happy and we look forward to spending the rest of our lives together.”

They have twin sons Kaiis Steven and Kian William, 14, and daughter Alizeh Keshvar, 16.

RELATED VIDEO: Geena Davis’ Fourth Husband Reza Jarrahy Files for Divorce After Nearly 17 Years of Marriage

Davis gushed about Jarrahy in a 2006 Good Housekeeping profile. She commented, “I did say to Reza, ‘You’re about to become someone’s fourth husband. What on earth are you thinking?’ But as for myself, I wasn’t nervous at all. I really did feel that I had turned a corner, that I had pulled off changes that were real and permanent.”

She continued, “And it was exciting to know I was marrying someone who I can be cranky or selfish in front of and he doesn’t run screaming from the room or judge me for it. It’s like I discovered a whole other way to live.”

Davis and Jarrahy met through friends in 1999 and got engaged in November 2000. Davis was previously married to Finnish film director Renny Harlin (1993–98), actor Jeff Goldblum (1987–90) and restaurateur Richard Emmolo (1982–83).