Hunter Biden Argues He's Not Legally Obligated to Communicate with His 7-Year-Old Daughter in New Court Filing

Hunter Biden’s long-running legal and personal dispute with the mother of his youngest child has taken another bitter turn, as his attorneys argue that no court can compel him to act like a father — even to his own daughter.

Biden and former stripper Lunden Roberts have been locked in conflict for most of the life of their 7-year-old daughter, Navy Joan Roberts. The child’s early years were defined by court battles over paternity and child support, disputes that were temporarily resolved through a 2023 settlement agreement.

That uneasy truce has now fractured. Earlier this month, Roberts petitioned an Arkansas judge to have Hunter Biden arrested for allegedly violating the settlement. According to the Daily Mail, one of the agreement’s key provisions required Biden to meet with his daughter — something Roberts says never happened.

Hunter Biden’s legal team flatly rejected that claim.

“Any failure to communicate with the Child is not punishable by contempt, as the Order does not order Defendant to communicate with the Child,” attorney Brent Langdon wrote in a filing responding to Roberts, as reported by the New York Post.

Roberts, however, paints a very different picture. She told the court that after initially showing interest, Biden abruptly cut off contact.

In 2024, she wrote, “suddenly and without warning or explanation, Mr. Biden ghosted sweet, little MC1—who was then only five-years-old,” according to the Mail. Court documents refer to the child as MC1, or Minor Child 1.

Roberts’s attorney underscored the grim reality of the situation in blunt terms.

“It is axiomatic that no one can force Mr. Biden into being a good dad for MC1, but this court can make it so that MC1 has, at least, the same level of support as MC1’s younger half-brother,” the lawyer wrote.

Biden’s attorneys dismissed these claims as legally irrelevant, arguing that the accusations have no bearing on Roberts’s request to hold him in contempt or to increase child support payments. Hunter Biden currently pays $5,000 per month in support.

The dispute also extends to Biden’s artwork, which gained attention and value during his father Joe Biden’s presidency. Roberts alleged that Biden failed to honor an agreement requiring that Navy receive either his paintings or proceeds from their sale.

Langdon countered that the agreement specified no deadline.

“Even if no paintings had been given to the Child to date, such would not violate the Order, because as long as thirty paintings are assigned to the Child by Defendant will have complied with the Order,” Langdon wrote.

New York Post columnist Miranda Devine weighed in on the saga, questioning why Hunter Biden continues to court publicity long after his father left office.

“Instead of slithering away into obscurity once his father’s power was extinguished, the ex-first son has hardly been out of the news,” she wrote, citing Roberts’s description of Biden’s refusal to acknowledge his daughter.

Devine also highlighted Roberts’s claims that Biden repeatedly ignored attempts to facilitate contact.

“Ms. Roberts has reached out to Mr. Biden numerous times about [Navy] asking to speak with him, but the defendant, in classic, classless form, refuses to respond,” she noted, referencing Roberts’s filing seeking contempt charges.

Roberts further alleged that despite publicly portraying himself as financially constrained, Biden continues to enjoy a lifestyle unavailable to his excluded daughter. According to Devine, Roberts told the court that the Biden family remains “prosperous,” and that Hunter Biden “has access to a lavish lifestyle.”

The filing detailed stark contrasts among Biden’s children.

“For Thanksgiving 2025, the Biden family (minus [Navy], who is not allowed to participate in family activities) gathered at an exclusive Nantucket locale. Additionally, all of Mr. Biden’s children except [Navy] were seen at renowned Nantucket restaurants,” Roberts wrote.

Devine described the court filings as “a blistering indictment from a woman who has been almost farcically loyal to Hunter in the hope that her daughter might be accepted as a Biden,” adding, “One day, she may thank her lucky stars she hasn’t.”