Angelina Jolie And Brad Pitt Lawsuit Gets Wild Order From Judge Over NDAs
Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt’s lawsuit is the latest legal tea to spill out of Hollywood. In a significant development in the ongoing legal dispute between the two stars, Judge Lia Martin has mandated that Jolie produce every non-disclosure agreement (NDA) she created or agreed to in the last eight years. While it seems like a huge obstacle for Jolie’s team to overcome, the actress’s lawyers actually see it as a win.
20 Years Of Drama
For 20 years, the drama between the two actors has been some of the spiciest for pop culture fans to follow. For better or worse, Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt continue to deliver with their latest legal battle, a lawsuit centered around the former couple’s joint ownership of the Château Miraval winery.
Issues Over A Winery
The NDAs have emerged as a critical point of contention in the Angelina Jolie-Brad Pitt lawsuit, which Pitt initiated following Jolie’s decision to sell her 50 percent stake in the winery to Russian billionaire Yuri Shefler.
Pitt, who owns the remaining half, claims that Jolie breached a prior agreement to sell her share to him. Jolie’s legal team contends that she retracted her agreement after Pitt’s team insisted she sign an NDA as part of the sale, which Jolie’s camp argues was overly restrictive.
What About The NDAs?
The Tomb Raider actress claims that the NDA would have required her to keep tight-lipped about the alleged abuse that led to the couple’s divorce.
Meanwhile, the Bullet Train actor claims the NDA was meant to protect the integrity of the wine brand and that his ex-wife often signs similar NDAs on a regular basis.
Now, the court will review all NDAs Angelina Jolie signed between 2014 and 2022 to determine if Brad Pitt has a winning argument in this lawsuit.
Both Sides See It As A Win
Both sides see the NDA order as a win. While Angelina Jolie’s legal team sees this as an opportunity to prove Brad Pitt tried to cover up his abuse with an NDA, the actor’s team thinks the order is a “crushing blow” to the actress, suggesting it could significantly weaken her defense.
Previously, Angelina Jolie’s attorneys have described Brad Pitt’s proposed NDA which triggered this lawsuit as “a greatly expanded NDA now covering Pitt’s personal misconduct, whether related to Miraval or not.”
They maintain that Jolie has refrained from publicly discussing the abuse publicly in order to protect the ex-couple’s six children, but that the proposed NDA was meant to silence the actress indefinitely. Pitt’s representatives, however, argue that the NDA was meant to “protect the reputation of the Miraval brand.”
Angelina Jolie Must Turn Them Over
The judge overseeing the Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt lawsuit is requiring the actress to turn over eight years of NDAs in response to arguments from Pitt’s team claiming the documents would demonstrate the reasonableness of the actor’s proposed NDA for the winery deal.
They claim that comparing these documents could show that the NDA in question was not “unconscionable.”
More To Come?
Meanwhile, Angelina Jolie’s team is “more than happy” to turn over the documents, believing it will help them win over Brad Pitt in the lawsuit.
According to the actress’s lawyer, “Common NDAs are simply not comparable to Mr. Pitt’s last-second demand to try and cover up his personal misconduct.”
Moreover, this now opens doors for Jolie’s team to discuss the abuse allegations in relation to the case.
Source: Entertainment Weekly
