Oscar winner Hilary Swank to divorce

May 27, 2006, 0:33 GMT

Picture dated 09 January 2005 shows actress Hilary Swank and her husband actor Chad Lowe posing for photographers during the National Society of Film Critics Awards in New York. EPA/MIGUEL RAJMIL

Los Angeles - Double Oscar-winning actress Hilary Swank is to get divorced from her husband of over eight years, actor Chad Lowe, People Magazine reported Friday.

'Hilary Swank and Chad Lowe have jointly decided to divorce,' the couple's lawyer, Jeffrey A. Bernstein, told the magazine. 'They continue to be friends and have the utmost respect for one another.'

The couple, met in 1992 and wed in 1997. They have no children and it was a first marriage for both.

Swank, 31, and Lowe, 38, separated in January but claimed to be working to patch their marriage up. 'Hilary and Chad have decided to separate, but they are hopeful they'll be able to get through this tough time,' Swank's representative, Troy Nankin, said in a statement at the time.

Swank won a best actress Oscar in 2000 for her performance in Boys Don't Cry, when she famously forgot to thank her husband. She rectified the mistake last year, when she won again for Million Dollar Baby.