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For many, the recent Johnny Depp-Amber Heard court battle brought to mind another high-profile legal war that pitted (no pun intended) a pair of A-list exes against one another.
When Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie separated back in 2016 there were allegations of abuse and defamation similar to what we saw the Depp-Heard split.
Of course, Pitt and Jolie were able to handle matters in a much quieter way, possibly a result of the fact that they had six children to protect.
Now, the actors might be headed back to court after Pitt filed a surprising lawsuit against his ex.
According to court documents obtained by People magazine, Pitt is suing Jolie for selling off her share of the Chateau Miraval wine brand that the two of them purchased during their marriage.
Pitt alleges thst Jolie “sought to inflict harm on” him by selling her stake in the company.
In documents filed on Friday, Pitt claims that Miraval became his “passion” project that grew “into a multimillion-dollar global business and one of the world’s most highly regarded producers of rosé wine” through his efforts.
He accuses Jolie of contributing “nothing to Miraval’s success.”
Pitt alleges Jolie of basically stealing the company out from under her by selling her share to Tenute del Mondo, which is “bent on taking control of Miraval” and is “indirectly owned and controlled by Yuri Shefler, the Russian billionaire who controls the Stoli Group.”
“Jolie pursued and then consummated the purported sale in secret, purposely keeping Pitt in the dark, and knowingly violating Pitt’s contractual rights,” the lawsuit reads.
Pitt alleges that Jolie owed him right of first refusal when she decided to put her share of the company up for sale.
He claims that the deal enabled Shefler to obtain “confidential and proprietary information for the benefit of his competing enterprise.”
In his filing, Pitt accuses Shefler of “cutthroat business tactics and dubious professional associations.”
The actor’s lawyers claim that the deal “jeopardizes the reputation of the brand Pitt so carefully built.”
They allege that Angelina knew what she was doing when she made the deal, writing:
“Jolie has sought to force Pitt into partnership with a stranger, and worse yet, a stranger with poisonous associations and intentions.”
Brad is requesting a jury trial, and the situation has the potential to get very messy, especially since Pitt and Jolie have yet to finalize their divorce.
Pitt got sober in 2016 following his split from Jolie.
So his attachment to his wine company is all the more surprising — after all, it’s not like the guy needs the money.
Many are wondering if there’s more going on here than a simple disagreement involving a dispute over what was once a joint business venture.
Was Pitt inspired to seek legal action against his ex by Depp’s victory over Heard?
Whatever the case, it seems that the most schocking celebrity split of 2016 is about to re-enter the headlines.
We’ll have further updates on this developing story as more information becomes available.
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