Angelina Jolie fights back as she claims Brad Pitt tried to gag her with NDA to hide allegations of abuse
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA: Angelina Jolie has leveled serious accusations against Brad Pitt, claiming he tried to coerce her into signing an $8.5 million non-disclosure agreement to silence her allegations of abuse.
Court documents, filed in Los Angeles County Superior Court on July 25, and obtained by People, reveal Jolie’s legal team, on behalf of the 49-year-old actress, is pushing for a motion to compel 60-year-old Pitt to release personal communications.
Pitt’s lawyers have countered, calling the request "wide-ranging and intrusive."
Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie's legal battle over winery Chateau Miraval and child custody
The legal feud between the former power couple is far from a recent development.
Back in 2022, Pitt launched a lawsuit against Jolie, accusing her of violating an agreement by selling her share of Château Miraval, their jointly owned winery, without his consent. But their disputes don’t stop there— they’re also entangled in a separate custody battle over their children, who have grown up amid the drama.
Their brood includes Maddox, 22, Pax, 20, Zahara, 19, Shiloh, 18, and 16-year-old twins Knox and Vivienne.
Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt, one of Hollywood's most iconic couples, met in 2003 during the filming of 'Mr & Mrs Smith'.
At that time, Pitt was married to Jennifer Aniston, and Jolie had recently separated from Billy Bob Thornton. Their relationship quickly garnered media attention as "Brangelina."
They married in 2014 at their French home and had six children, including three adopted internationally.
However, their marriage ended in September 2016 when Jolie filed for divorce, citing irreconcilable differences, the split consequently leading to a prolonged and contentious custody battle over their children.
Brad Pitt demands $8.5M NDA for silence on abuse
In newly revealed court papers, Jolie's attorneys made it clear that her sale of Miraval shares in 2021 was not motivated by any malicious intent or desire to harm Pitt over custody matters.
"Instead," the documents state, "it was Pitt who refused to buy her interest unless he received his newly expanded NDA, enforceable by an $8.5 million holdback specifically designed to force her silence about his abuse and cover-up."
Jolie's attorneys additionally said, "While Pitt advances what is effectively an outdated privacy-of-domestic-violence argument to shield his abuse, his argument is not the law, at least not in this century, and he cites no authority that would give him such unwarranted protections," the court documents read. "In any event, he waived any privacy protections when he sued Jolie."
In court documents obtained by People on July 15, Pitt's legal team requested the denial of Jolie's motion.
They claimed that Jolie was pushing for the release of communications regarding "about such sensitive issues as therapy he voluntarily undertook" following the infamous 2016 family plane incident that precipitated their divorce.
This, despite Pitt already offering to provide "documents sufficient to show everything that occurred on the flight."
Pitt's attorneys argued that his "private, third-party communications" from that period are irrelevant to their current winery dispute, accusing Jolie of attempting to "turn this business dispute into a re-litigation of the former couple’s divorce case."
Angelina Jolie's attorneys demand continued document production from Brad Pitt
Meanwhile, in court documents filed on July 25, Angelian Jolie's attorneys pointed out that Pitt "contends that he did not use the NDA to attempt to cover up any abuse."
They argued that he should be compelled to continue producing documents related to her allegations during the discovery phase of their legal battle.
"Jolie has no desire to litigate these issues and for years never publicly discussed any of it. Rather than appreciate her discretion, Pitt sought to contractually mandate and enforce it," the documents read.
"Because she refused, he seeks to punish her, demanding $67 million plus punitive damages. In so doing, Pitt placed his conduct squarely at issue. While Jolie sincerely wishes Pitt would end this litigation and finally put their family on a clear path toward healing, that cannot happen while Pitt relentlessly pursues her," it further read.
A source recently informed People that nearly eight years after their split, Pitt and Jolie's divorce settlement remains unresolved. "Both sides are still in discussions," the source close to the couple revealed, "but they haven’t reached a final agreement yet."
Reportedly, Pitt, 60, has "virtually no contact" with his adult children, though his agreement with Jolie allows him to visit their younger kids.
However, his time with them has been more restricted lately due to his filming commitments. Pitt has been busy shooting "F1" in the U.K. and was recently seen enjoying the British Grand Prix with his girlfriend, Ines de Ramon.
