Brad Pitt is suing his ex-wife Angelina Jolie, alleging that she sold their French chateau, Château Miraval, unlawfully.
Pitt claims they promised that neither would sell their half of the Château — where they married in 2014 — or its lucrative vineyard without the other’s permission.
However, while the vineyard became “Pitt’s passion,” Jolie shamelessly sold her portion to Russian billionaire Yuri Shefler without his authorization, according to the lawsuit.
“Jolie finalized the putative transaction without Pitt’s knowledge,” according to case filings filed in Los Angeles Superior Court, “denying Pitt the consent right she owed him and the right of first refusal her corporate entity gave him.”
“She sold her stake in Miraval with the understanding and purpose that Shefler and his associates would try to take control of the company to which Pitt had dedicated himself and undercut Pitt’s investment.”
The vineyard is valued at $164 million.
The Miraval estate is situated in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur area of southern France, near the hamlet of Correns. The 35-room estate is surrounded by exquisite grounds, which include a moat, fountains, aqueducts, a pond, a church, and a vineyard in which Pitt claims to have put a substantial sum of money.
Jolie, 46, and Pitt, 58, purchased the estate for $28.4 million in 2008 with the intention of raising their children there and starting a family winery. The pair married there in 2014 and divorced in 2019.
Even though their tumultuous divorce has been completed, the couple is still fighting over child custody and their substantial assets in court.
Pitt turned Miraval’s vineyard into a multimillion-dollar enterprise and one of the world’s top rosé wine producers.
However, according to court documents, “Jolie ceased contributing entirely” to the upgrades by 2013, although Pitt “continued to spend millions of dollars… [financing] nearly 70% of the couple’s investment in Miraval.”
The complaint claims that in January 2021, “Jolie told Pitt in writing that she had made a ‘sad choice, with a sorrowful heart.'”
The suit adds, “Jolie stated she bought Miraval with Pitt ‘as a family business’ and as the location she felt they’would grow old’ together.”
“However,” Jolie said, “given her personal concerns, she could no longer retain any ownership position in an alcohol-based firm.” Pitt launched talks to buy out Jolie’s stake in the company.
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The Stoli Group’s wine subsidiary, Tenute del Mondo, then announced in October 2021 that it had bought Jolie’s 50 percent ownership in the estate and the wines it produces. Shefler, a Russian businessman, is in charge of the company.
Pitt was taken aback by the sale, and now says he is unable to use the Château as his own residence and can no longer manage the firm he helped to start and spend millions of dollars in.
“Jolie attempts to recoup unjustified windfall profits for herself while causing gratuitous pain on Pitt,” the lawsuit continues. Jolie ceased contributing to Miraval a long time ago, while Pitt put money and work effort into the winery. Jolie is attempting to benefit on earnings she hasn’t achieved and returns on investments she hasn’t made.”
Furthermore, “the alleged transaction deprives Pitt of his ability to enjoy his own residence and to manage the firm he built from the ground up.”
On August 23, 2014, Brangelina married at their wine estate in Le Val, France.
While Pitt’s investment and labor to produce Miraval wine has made the property worth hundreds of millions of dollars, “Miraval’s success and related growth in value permitted Jolie to cash out without ever having lifted a finger to build the business.”
“Unfortunately, this is another example of the same individual neglecting her legal and ethical responsibility,” a source acquainted with the issue stated.
“By appearing to sell both the company and the family home to a third-party rival, she has infringed the rights of the sole individual who invested money and sweat equity into the development of the business.”
“She is looking for a return on an investment and earnings she did not produce.”
Jolie’s lawyers and a representative could not be reached for comment right away.