Thomas Ravenel's Sexual Assault Allegations Could Be Used Against Him in Custody Battle

Kathryn Dennis just won a victory in her ongoing custody battle with Thomas Ravenel

Southern Charm alum Thomas Ravenel‘s sexual assault allegations could be used against him in his ongoing custody case with ex Kathryn Dennis.

PEOPLE confirmed on Friday that a judge denied Ravenel’s motion for a protective order to limit the discovery of events prior to June 2017; the alleged sexual assaults both took place in 2015.

In the mother of two’s return to Ravenel’s motion for a protective order, obtained by PEOPLE, Dennis — she shares daughter Kensington Calhoun, 4, and son St. Julien Rembert, 3 with Ravenel — alleged that he filed the motion to “significantly limit the scope of discovery in this matter to prevent [Dennis] from discovering highly relevant evidence in this custody case.”

Attorneys for Ravenel, 56, and Dennis, 26, had no comment.

In Dennis’ return, filed Thursday, Feb. 28, it states that the pair was “previously involved in a Family Court case which resulted in a Consent Order that was approved by the Court on June 30, 2017” and that the order “required both parties to participate in a parental fitness evaluation with the psychologist, Randall Waid, Ph.D., after the 2017 Order was issued by the Court.”

The documents also go on to mention the two sexual assault cases brought against him, which Dennis learned about after the consent order was approved by the court.

Kathryn Dennis/Instagram

“[Ravenel] was charged with criminal assault and battery related to the prior sexual assault of the parties’ former nanny … Mr. Ravenel was charged with the criminal offense on September 24, 2018. The charges remain pending,” reads the documents.

(In September, Ravenel was charged with assault and battery in the second degree after a woman who worked as his children’s nanny accused him of rape, Charleston County jail records show. A source told PEOPLE that Ravenel’s arrest is connected to her allegations. The arrest report lists the crime incident as “sex offense/forcible rape” and refers to an incident in January 2015, although most details have been redacted to protect the victim.)

The return explains that “after the 2017 Order was filed, [Dennis] discovered through reports that [Ravenel] has also paid the sum of $200,000 to a woman by the name of Debbie Holloway Perkins for a confidentiality agreement arising from her claim that Mr. Ravenel sexually assaulted Ms. Perkins on a Tinder date.”

(In May 2018, real estate agent Ashley Perkins alleged to PEOPLE that her mother, Debbie Holloway Perkins, met Ravenel on dating app Tinder in October 2015 and went on a last-minute first date with him on Dec. 25 of that year. Ashley also detailed the allegations on her website. On June 1, 2016, Debbie and Ashley allegedly participated in mediation. According to Ashley, her mother signed a non-disclosure agreement with Ravenel and received $200,000.)

Kathryn Dennis/Instagram

In a previous statement to PEOPLE, Ravenel’s attorney, Richard P. Terbrusch said, “My client enjoys a certain degree of fame, which has unfortunately made him a vulnerable target for such claims. The person this woman describes is simply not the man that I know. My client is a loving father, successful businessman, and upright member of the community. He is appalled and hurt by these allegations—and is committed to defending his reputation in the appropriate legal forum.”

Now, Dennis believes that Ravenel’s alleged sexual assaults could have an impact on his parenting and she requested the court’s permission to use the information in their custody battle.

“The prior sexual assaults allegedly committed by Mr. Ravenel may have a significant impact on the parental fitness of him,” the documents states. “Complete discovery concerning these incidents needs to be allowed by the Court. Such incidents are highly relevant to potential psychological issues that affect parental fitness and other aspects of custody.”

The return explained that Ravenel was claiming that he wanted “to limit any discovery as to events occurring prior to June 30, 2017.”

“It is transparent that [Ravenel] wants to claim that Court can’t consider the prior sexual assaults despite the obvious fact that such assault are important in regard to evaluating his parental fitness and/or might result in a period of incarceration,” the documents state.

The reality star also believes that she “should be provided the rest to conduct discovery of such past history of the parties because it could alter or modify the parental evaluations and/or cause Dr. Waid to reconsider the evaluation in light of the new evidence that has predominantly only come to light recently,” reads the documents.

The documents later state that “the scope of discovery should not be limited to an arbitrary date. [Dennis] has a right to obtain discovery of such past events since it can impact the parental fitness evaluation of Mr. Ravenel … Discovery of past events which reflect a pattern of the abuse of women or alcohol/drugs, a pattern of making threats to third parties, a pattern of relying upon a Nanny to take care of young children when a parent is incapable of doing so himself, are all potentially relevant to an ultimate issue of Final Custody ruling in this case.”

Dennis believes that she “has a right to conduct discovery of incidents that occurred prior to June 30, 2017, as such incidents are relevant to or could lead to the discovery of relevant evidence concerning a determination of parental fitness, substance abuse issues, potential criminal conduct, and an ultimate decision by the court.”

She will appear in court on March 13, when she is scheduled to request that their case be sealed.

Three years ago, Dennis lost custody of the children and entered rehab in 2016 after she failed a drug test, testing positive for marijuana. (Years earlier, Ravenel went to a 30-day rehab program himself; he served 10 months in federal prison after being indicted by a federal grand jury in June 2007 on a charge of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute less than 500 grams of cocaine.)

In 2016, Ravenel was awarded full custody, but Dennis has since earned back 50/50 custody. In October, she filed documents in Charleston seeking to obtain primary custody of the two children, and on Nov. 6, Ravenel filed a counterclaim, vehemently denying all of Dennis’ allegations.

After the new year, Dennis filed new court documents, in which she made a series of requests. Among them, she asked for Ravenel’s “credit card monthly statements” from Jan. 1, 2016 to the present; “itemized cellular/mobile phone records” from Jan. 1, 2016 to the present; and copies of electronic or social media posts from the past four years, as well as whether Ravenel has “had any discussions” with on-off girlfriend Ashley Jacobs “about marriage and/or plans to marry Ashley Jacobs.”