A motion filed by Brad Pitt’s legal team has been granted in his legal battle against his ex-wife Angelina Jolie over the French winery they used to own together, Château Miraval.
As reported by People, court documents show that Pitt was granted a motion by the Superior Court of California that will force members of the Stoli Group, the new owners of the French winery, to comply. In 2021, Jolie sold her $164 million stake in Château Miraval to Tenute del Mondo, a subsidiary of the Stoli Group. Pitt previously filed court documents in an attempt to depose the Stoli Group’s Alexey Oliynik last year, because he allegedly refused to agree to a deposition or turn over documents relevant to the case.
Pitt sued his ex-wife in 2023 over her 2021 sale to the Stoli Group, which is owned by the Switzerland-based Russian billionaire Yuri Shefler, seeking damages. The actor’s legal team argued that the Stoli Group “has been the subject of repeated boycotts in connection with Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine and homophobic legislative Agenda.” In the legal filing, Pitt alleged that the sale “jeopardizes [his] reputation.”
In a counter-filing, Jolie described Shelfer as a “Russian exile who is a long-time critic of Vladimir Putin,” and said Pitt’s categorizations of him were part of a “xenophobic, untrue smear campaign.” Oliynik and “persons most qualified” with knowledge of the sale will need to participate in depositions by September 30.
“This win is another step towards transparency over what took place,” a source close to Pitt’s legal team said, adding that Shelfer “was a partner [Jolie] chose knowing it was a partner Brad did not want involved in the business.” Another insider claimed that Pitt “would have first right of refusal” over the sale, but Jolie “sold to Shelfer anyway.” A lawyer for Jolie, meanwhile, said that the ruling has “no impact on the merits of the case, and certainly has no impact on Ms. Jolie's case.”
A source close to Jolie said that she only sold to Stoli because she believed the company would be “an excellent worldwide distribution partner who could help grow the business for the benefit of their children, who stood to inherit Brad’s portion.” They blamed Pitt’s legal action on his apparent “ego and obsession for control,” and that he filed the lawsuit because “Angie chose them, not him.”
Jolie filed for divorce from Pitt in 2016. By the end of 2024, their divorce had been finalized.
