'The TRUTH has not been made public': Angelina Jolie slams Brad Pitt's claims she tried to 'harm him'
Brad Pitt, the 58-year-old actor sued Angelina Jolie, 47, in February, alleging that she illegally transferred her rights in a winery they bought together in 2008. The now-ex-couple, who have six children together, bought a controlling stake in Château Miraval, a vineyard and property in the South of France, where they later married in 2014 and spent countless family vacations together throughout their marriage.
Pitt's recent court declaration in his ongoing legal dispute with Jolie over the sale of Château Miraval is sending out a "false narrative," according to a person familiar with the situation reported to People. Pitt claimed that Jolie purposefully "sought to inflict harm on" him by selling her stakes in the wine company in new legal documents filed Friday, June 3 in Los Angeles County Superior Court. Pitt claims they promised not to sell their separate stakes without the agreement of the other. In papers acquired by People, he also requested a jury trial.
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"Mr Pitt's lawsuit against Ms Jolie is an extension of a false narrative, and the truth of the situation has still not been made public," a source close to the situation told People. "After the events that led to Ms Jolie filing for divorce and her years devoted to caring for their children, Ms Jolie and the children have not been able to return to the property, and she made the difficult decision to sell her stake in the business. After making multiple offers to her ex-husband, and knowing the business will be inherited by their children, she found a business partner with experience in the alcohol industry."
The source added, "It's unfortunate that after she properly and legally exited the business, Mr Pitt is entangling her in multiple lawsuits." But a source close to Pitt said, "This makes no sense. The best way to retain value for the family would have been for one of their parents to retain ownership of an increasingly valuable asset. He could have bought her out. There's a lot more value in a family owning 100 percent than 40 to 50 percent."
Pitt's lawyers claim that the vineyard became his "passion" project, growing "into a multimillion-dollar global corporation and one of the world's most highly acclaimed manufacturers of rosé wine" as a result of his efforts, according to his recent filing. The actor claims Jolie had "nothing to Miraval's success." His legal team also claims she broke their agreement in October by concealing the transfer of her shares to Tenute del Mondo, a company that is "bent on taking control of Miraval" and is "indirectly owned and controlled by Yuri Shefler, the Russian billionaire who controls the Stoli Group."
According to Pitt's lawsuit, Jolie's company Nouvel owes his company, Mondo Bongo, the right of first refusal, which was violated by the transaction. In September, Jolie, who divorced in 2016, was given permission to sell her portion of the estate. Pitt is claiming breach of implied-in-fact contract, breach of quasi-contract in the alternative, breach of the implied covenant of good faith and fair dealing, abuse of rights under Luxembourg Civil Code Article 6-1, tortious interference with contractual relations, tortious interference with prospective business relations, and constructive trust. He's asking for damages "in an amount to be proven at trial," as well as for Jolie's reported transaction to be deemed "null and void."