Angelina Jolie Wins Major Victory Over Brad Pitt in Legal Battle over Château de Miraval
It’s a victory for Angelina Jolie. After a long legal battle over the sale of Château Miraval—the French winery Jolie co-owned with her ex Brad Pitt, located in Correns, France—Jolie notched a big win in court on Monday, May 4. According to documents obtained by Page Six, a Los Angeles Superior Court judge ruled that Pitt could not compel Jolie to hand over a series of private emails relating to the sale of her shares in the French winery.In 2022, Brad Pitt filed a lawsuit against Angelina Jolie for selling her shares in the estate to the Tenute del Mondo wine group—a division of the Luxembourg-based Stoli Group—without consulting him beforehand. The sale was worth $67 million, which Pitt claimed broke an agreement between the former spouses that neither would sell without the other’s approval. Jolie denied the existence of this agreement and responded by filing a counterclaim, claiming that Pitt was waging a “vindictive war” against her, according to Page Six.“This is an important victory for Ms. Jolie,” said the actress’s lawyer, Paul Murphy, in a statement released to the press. According to Murphy, the actress’s ex-husband “was completely out of bounds when he sought access to obviously privileged documents.” Pitt had initially demanded 126 confidential documents, later reduced to 22, to no avail. He claimed that these messages, between Jolie and her sales team, were not covered by professional secrecy. This request, Murphy says, continues “Mr. Pitt’s pattern of demanding control over anything Angelina, including control over her communications with her own attorneys. We are extremely gratified that the both the Court of Appeal and the trial court ultimately put a stop to it.”The F1 star’s motion was dismissed, with the court finding that he had “not met his burden” to override the actress’s argument that these messages are protected. However, it was “denied without prejudice,” meaning that Pitt will be able to appeal. Vanity Fair reached out to Pitt for comment.A source close to Pitt told People, “The judge allowed Pitt’s team to revisit [the decision] as evidence develops. It’s notable how Jolie has withheld so many documents as privileged. It’s just some of the evidence in the case.”As Vanity Fair reported in 2023, the former couple had set their sights on the property after vacationing there for three consecutive years. They then signed a three-year lease in 2007. It wasn’t until 2011 that the two stars finally acquired the property for $67 million.This 17th-century Provençal-style château-bastide comprises a 1,200-hectare estate that includes a pine forest, an olive grove, and a 30-hectare vineyard in the Provence region, renowned for its organic Miraval rosé. The interior, meanwhile, is bright and quiet luxury: It’s minimalist, the furniture is mostly off-white, and the wispy linen panels filter the sun’s rays.After renovating and furnishing it, the couple formerly known as Brangelina celebrated their wedding at Château Miraval in August 2014. The estate then became the center of a legal battle after Jolie filed for divorce in September 2016.
