Brad Pitt Sues Angelina Jolie Over Their Shared Wine Company And Claims She "Sought To Inflict Harm" On Him
Powerhouse couple Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt were a pillar of Hollywood for years. They were together for 12 years (married for two), raised six children together, and endured many ups and downs.
When they announced their divorce in 2016, it came as a surprise to most. They seemed happy together and content with their family life, but it soon became clear that the split was anything but amicable and there were accusations of substance abuse and even child abuse on Pitt's end. Things have only gotten worse from there. The two are now caught in another legal battle (in addition to fighting for custody for their children) over a wine company they previously owned together.
Brad Pitt Sues Angelina Jolie Over Their Shared Wine Company
Pitt and Jolie purchased a controlling stake in a wine company called Chateau Miraval in 2008, and the purchase consisted of a beautiful home and vineyard in Correns, France (where their wedding took place in 2014). At the time it was a standard business decision, but today that purchase has turned sour.
At first Pitt owned 60% and Jolie owned 40%, but in 2013 they became equal 50/50 owners. They made an agreement that neither would sell their shares without discussing the decision with one another. Granted, this pledge was made before they split up.
Last year, however, Jolie set up a sale of her 50% stake in the company and Pitt claimed this was inappropriate as she never consulted him on whether he wanted the sale to go through or if he wanted to sell his shares before the sale was conducted. Shortly after, Jolie's sale of her shares was approved. It turns out Jolie sold her shares to Yuri Shefler, a Russian oligarch who owns a spirits manufacturer in Luxembourg.
Now Pitt, 58, is suing Jolie, 47, for breach of implied-in-fact contract and accusing her of allowing Shefler to get a hold of "confidential and proprietary information for the benefit of his competing enterprise." Pitt's attorneys claim that Shefler's involvement "jeopardizes the reputation of the brand Pitt so carefully built."
"Jolie has sought to force Pitt into partnership with a stranger, and worse yet, a stranger with poisonous associations and intentions," they said. Pitt aims to make the sale "null and void" and seeks damages "in an amount to be proven at trial." He's asking for a trial by jury.
Jolie's team has yet to speak out on this issue, but it seems to throw another wrench in their already-tattered relationship as the two are already battling over custody for their children. Allegedly, Miraval was Pitt's "passion" project that he devoted much time and energy to. His team claimed that Miraval grew "into a multimillion-dollar global business and one of the world's most highly regarded producers of rosé wine" because of Pitt's hard work, and they hope to prove this in court to a jury.
It's sad to see such a gorgeous couple not only go through a tough divorce but find themselves in the middle of so many legal battles, especially considering the fact that they have six young children in the middle of everything.