Brad Pitt sues ex-wife Angelina Jolie for illegally selling her stake in French winery
The American star Brad Pitt, 58, has reportedly sued his ex-wife and model Angelia Jolie, 46, over a business transaction she made with Russian Oligarch, Yuri Shefler, that resulted in selling off the 50% share of a France winery they owned. According to the lawsuit, Angelia Jolie is accused of illegally selling off her share of their French estate, Château Miraval. The duo had mutually purchased the land in 2008 and Pitt alleges to have developed the winery on his own by investing his sweat and wealth, which has now turned to ashes overnight.
The Oklahoma-born actor filed the lawsuit in Los Angeles supreme court and has asked the judicial system to reverse a pact made by Jolie that delivered her share to Stoli Group subsidiary Tenute del Mondo, which is run by Shefler and award him damages in connection with the transaction. The court documents suggest that he and Jolie initially purchased the winery in 2008 for $28.4 million, at which time she put down about 40 percent of the funding (about $11.36 million).
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Pitt accused Jolie of not matching his efforts to develop the winery since 2013 and claimed that he built the multi-million dollar business on his own. Pitt told the court that he and Jolie had agreed that they would not sell off their interest in the winery without the consent of the other party. After working for many years in the industry, the duo tied knots in 2014, however decided to part ways after they encountered mutual conflicts in interests in 2016. Jolie filed for divorce in September 2016, leading to an ongoing legal battle that has persisted into 2022 on multiple fronts.
The Miraval estate is located in the village of Correns in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur region in southeastern France. The 35-room mansion is surrounded by lush gardens with a moat, fountains, aqueducts, a pond, a chapel, and a vineyard that Pitt says he has invested a large amount of money in. Today, the grand mansion produces one of the finest rose wines in the world and Pitt claims the entire credibility of its success. Even though Jolie lagged behind in building the business, Pitt “continued to invest millions of dollars … [funding] roughly 70 percent of the couple’s investment in Miraval.”
In January 2021, “Jolie informed Pitt in writing that she had reached a ‘painful decision, with a heavy heart,'” the suit alleges. Jolie explained that she had purchased Miraval with Pitt 'as a family business' and as the place, she believed they ‘would grow old’ together,” the suit continues. “Nevertheless,” Jolie continued, she could “no longer maintain any ownership position in an alcohol-based business given her personal objections.” Pitt began negotiations to buy out Jolie’s share. But the destiny led the shares into the hands of a Russian businessman Shefler, whose company announced that they had purchased 50% stake in the estate and the wines it produces.
