After eight more years of a battle for justice in the courtroom, Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie finally came to a settlement of their publicized divorce.
According to People magazine, Jolie's lawyers confirmed Monday, Dec. 30, 2024, that the two parties had reached a settlement, ending this latest chapter in a saga of divorce proceedings that started on a very public September in 2016.
Jolie and Pitt had been married two years and together 12 years when their relationship came to an end.
Jolie filed for divorce on September 19, 2016, citing "irreconcilable differences," shortly after an incident involving a private plane flight that she claimed escalated into an abusive altercation between Pitt and their six children.
The authorities looked into the matter, but no charges were brought against Pitt; Jolie eventually decided she would not pursue the charge. According to People magazine, Jolie's lawyer, James Simon, commented about the journey: "Over eight years ago, Angelina filed for divorce from Mr Pitt. She and the children left all of the properties they had shared with Mr Pitt, and since that time she has devoted herself to finding peace and healing for their family. This is just one component of a long process that has been ongoing for eight years now. Frankly, Angelina is exhausted, but she is relieved this part is over."
According to a source close to Jolie, the actress had focused on moving forward; in fact, "she does not speak ill of Pitt publicly or privately," as she has tried "very hard to be light after a dark time," the People magazine reported. A very complex and highly disputed divorce, which had important differences, especially about children custody and their properties.
In the years following Jolie's divorce filing, the couple had been caught up in long and sometimes nasty legal battles.
Early on, the ex-couple agreed to deal with the divorce privately by using a private judge to sort out the legal nitty-gritty.
They also asked for all records about their children to be sealed in a bid to protect their private lives, according to People magazine.
Despite these efforts to keep things behind closed doors, the divorce process was not exactly smooth sailing.
One of the major custody battles involved their six children Maddox (23), Pax (21), Zahana (19), Shiloh (18), and twins Vivienne and Knox (16). People magazine reports that harsh accusations were filed in Los Angeles Superior Court.
Pitt and Jolie reached an agreement to seal sensitive court records involving their children in 2017, and they bifurcated their divorce on a final basis. Their status as single has been declared for purposes of this action in 2019.
The two have maintained their challenging course since then: Pitt got engaged to LA jewellery executive Ines de Ramon in 2022.
Although the divorce agreement served as an end to one aspect of their legal case, there has been continuous argument about dividing their assets, such as their French property and Chateau Miraval winery.
In 2022, Pitt sued Jolie after she sold her interests in their property to a third party. Jolie sued him back in her response, arguing that Pitt was orchestrating an effort to seize total control of the winery after they separated.
According to People magazine, Nouvel, a business entity of Jolie's, argued in the lawsuit that Pitt had been working behind the scenes to take over the property. That had been a symbol of their shared life and investments.
A source close to Pitt responded to the claims with People magazine, saying, "This is just the latest in a series of deliberate efforts to misdirect, recycle and reposition the truth of what has happened over the last six years." Pitt also sought to prove that there was indeed a written agreement between the couple regarding the sale of their shares in the estate, a claim that has been supported by a recent court ruling.
In a major court victory for Jolie, in November 2024, a judge ordered Pitt to turn over documents including emails and texts that may substantiate Jolie's allegations of abuse, which she maintains have been hidden for decades.
Both sides remain locked in the court battle regarding Chateau Miraval as Pitt's lawyers termed the request by Jolie's legal team for the production of documents as "a sensationalist fishing expedition," People magazine reported.
With litigation still ongoing, divorce proceedings themselves have now come to a close.
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