Phillippe and Witherspoon in custody battle

Reese Witherspoon's estranged husband Ryan Phillippe is seeking joint custody of the couple's children.

The pair separated in October 2006 after seven years of marriage, citing "irreconcilable differences". They have a son and a daughter, seven-year-old Ava and three-year-old Deacon, and when Witherspoon filed for divorce she asked for sole physical custody, with visitation rights for Phillippe.

However, the actor is now seeking joint custody and visitation rights "to both parties, equally allocated", the Associated Press reports.

Oscar winning actress Witherspoon met her soon-to-be ex-husband at her 21st birthday party in 1997. The following year they starred in the film Cruel Intentions together and became engaged, marrying in 1999 in North Carolina.

She has subsequently starred in a number of films including The Importance of Being Earnest, Vanity Fair, Just Like Heaven and Walk the Line, for which she won an Academy Award for her performance of June Carter Cash.

Phillippe, 32, has also starred in many films, including Gosford Park and Crash.