ORIG SP The divorce of Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt: a breakdown of events

Brangelina has been front-page news their entire relationship, from dramatic beginnings to explosive endings. But the unrelenting, prolonged, unraveling of their relationship and family, with a drawn-out custody battle and back-and-forth lawsuits, has stunned even the most accustomed Hollywood divorce scene.

Here we will look at this curious case of Brad and Angelina and how it all went wrong, not starting at their beginning, but at their unfortunate ending.

Brangelina was pinned as a Hollywood fling from day one, but they proved even their harshest critics wrong. The pair were together for 12 years, married for 2 years, with 6 children between them. They appeared to be the poster of familial bliss, but much was brewing beneath the surface.

An altercation on the couple's private jet in the summer of 2016 led to a child abuse investigation filed by Angelina Jolie into her then-husband Brad Pitt by the Department of Child and Family Services.

Because the alleged incident occurred on an international flight from France to California, the investigation was also referred to the FBI. After the filing, the FBI told the BBC: "We are continuing to gather facts and will evaluate whether an investigation at the federal level will be pursued."

A short time after the altercation, on September 19th, 2016, Angelina Jolie filed for divorce from Brad Pitt, citing "irreconcilable differences." She requested full physical custody of their six children: Maddox, Zahara, Shiloh, Pax, Knox, and Vivienne. "This decision was made for the health of the family," her attorney at the time told People.

On September 30th, 2016, the couple reached a temporary custody agreement where Jolie received full physical custody of the six children. Pitt would receive visitation rights, initially monitored by a therapist.

According to the court agreement, both parents would undergo court-ordered individual counseling and attend family counseling with the children. Pitt would be subjected to random drug and alcohol testing.

On November 4th, 2016, Pitt responded in court to Jolie's divorce petition with his own, seeking joint physical and legal custody of their six children and also citing "irreconcilable differences."

Alongside his filing, Pitt released the following statement to the media: "I am very saddened by this, but what matters most now is the wellbeing of our kids." He chose not to respond publicly to the allegations against him.

On November 9th, 2016, the Los Angeles County Department of Children and Family Services cleared all alleged child abuse charges against the actor. Later that month, the FBI would close its investigation into Pitt, with no charges being filed.

In January 2017, Brad and Angelina released an unusual joint statement to the media detailing their agreement to seal all court documents regarding their divorce in an effort to protect their six children. They also hired a private judge to help facilitate and expedite their proceedings.

A new joint temporary custody agreement came to fruition in the summer of 2018. The court agreement intricately specified days and hours of custody between Jolie, Pitt, and their five youngest children during the following months.

In August 2018, Jolie's attorney, Samantha Bley DeJean, filed court papers claiming Pitt hadn't paid "meaningful" child support in over a year and a half. Her lawyer explained that Jolie "intends to file for the establishment of a retroactive child support order."

According to the BBC, Pitt's legal team responded with a court filing of their own, stating that Pitt had paid more than $1.3 million in costs and loaned Jolie $8 million to assist her in buying a house. The document continued with a statement from Pitt that he:“adamantly disputes the contention that he has not paid significant child support.”

Unable to settle their custody arrangement amicably, with Jolie now seeking sole physical custody and Pitt seeking joint custody, a trial date was set for the estranged couple on December 4th, 2018.

In November 2018, both parties agreed upon a new custody arrangement, thus eliminating the need for a December trial. The filing and details of the deal were kept confidential for the benefit of the children.

Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie were declared legally single by the courts in April 2019 through a process known as bifurcation. They are no longer married and can now file separate taxes, but their divorce is not settled.

Jolie asked the court in August 2020 to dismiss their privately hired judge based on bias. It seemed that Judge Ouderkirk had failed to disclose "ongoing business and professional relationships" with Pitt and his legal team. Jolie was initially denied the motion but appealed the decision. The judge is shown here in 1993.

While awaiting a decision on his dismissal, Judge Ouderkirk issued a new temporary custody agreement in May 2021 that allowed for joint custody of the minor children between Jolie and Pitt.

In July 2021, Jolie's appeal of Ouderkirk's disqualification based on bias was approved by California's Second District Court of Appeal, thus dismissing him from the case. This meant the judge's latest decision about joint custody was reversed.

In response to the dismissal, Pitt requested a review of the appeal by the California Supreme Court. His request to hear the case was eventually denied by the Supreme Court, meaning the dismissal of both Judge Ouderkirk and his joint custody agreement would stand.

So, remember that little French Château the couple bought called Miraval? The two had been fighting in court over the rights to sell the château and its winery. Pitt wanted to keep it, and Jolie wanted to sell it. On October 5th, 2021, Tenute del Mondo, the wine division of the Stoli Group (yes, that Stoli vodka), announced its acquisition from Angelina Jolie of her shares of the French Château Miraval and Miraval Wines, 50% to be exact. Brad was not so happy...

Pitt fired back against the sale, filing a lawsuit in February 2022, alleging Jolie sold her stake in the Miraval Château and Miraval Wines without his knowledge or agreement. Fox News reports that Pitt alleged a breach of contract and was suing to cancel the deal and for punitive damages and legal fees.

Now, as if it couldn't become more complex, another court case comes to light regarding a domestic violence incident that occurred on a private plane years earlier. Sound familiar..? It was filed by an anonymous 'Jane Doe' who did not want her name revealed because she is a 'person of status.' The 'Jane Doe' sued the FBI to obtain information from their investigation of the case.

It had been widely speculated across the internet that Jolie had filed the FBI lawsuit. In August 2022, Eriq Gardner, at Puck, confirmed Jolie as the anonymous 'Jane Doe' of the FBI lawsuit. A judge later unsealed the FBI lawsuit, thus releasing many details, although highly redacted, to the public.

According to Bindu Bansinath at The Cut, "Jolie filed the lawsuit to better understand the FBI’s investigation and obtain information necessary for her children to receive medical care and trauma counseling. Jolie kept the lawsuit anonymous to protect her children from the physical and mental health risks of public exposure, and alleged that the FBI had publicly announced it was closing its investigation into Pitt without notifying her of its decision to do so." The case is still ongoing.

As the 'Jane Doe' FBI case continued progressing, Pitt's legal team continued fighting the sale of Château Miraval in court into 2022, with claims that Jolie "sought to inflict harm on Pitt." In court filings, Pitt's team also alleged that the Miraval buyer had "launched a hostile takeover, destabilizing the business and tarnishing the brand's reputation."

According to Vice News, in October 2022: “Jolie did offer to sell her interest in Chateau Miraval to Pitt, but in exchange for his purchase, Pitt demanded she sign a Non Disclosure Agreement that would have contractually prohibited her from speaking outside of court about Pitt’s physical and emotional abuse of her and their children.”

Jolie's team stated in their counterclaim filing that the NDA was: “an abusive and controlling deal-breaker for Jolie.” The sale to Pitt allegedly fell apart when she did not agree to include this provision. She then went forward with her own sale to an outside third party.

As the cases persisted in the courts, more documents came to light. In October 2022, a personal email between Jolie and Pitt was made public, explaining her decision to sell Château Miraval and the Miraval Winery.

In the released email, Jolie personally wrote to Pitt about her connection to the French Château, “It is the place we brought the twins home to, and where we were married over a plaque in my mother’s memory. A place that held the promise of what could be and where I thought I would grow old.

Even now...impossible to write this without crying.”

Jolie continued with frank words regarding her decision to sell the property and business, "I will treasure my memories of what it was a decade ago. But it is also the place that marks the beginning of the end of our family...

...and a business that is centered around alcohol," alluding to Pitt's alleged issues with alcohol. The actor has spoken publicly to the media about attending Alcoholics Anonymous meetings and living a sober lifestyle since the 2016 incident.

Brad Pitt has had few responses in the press throughout his lengthy divorce from Angelina Jolie. His lawyers stated to the media in October 2022 that the star would "respond in court" to allegations made by the actress.

Jolie's legal team filed a cross-complaint in October 2022 against Pitt's last filing regarding the Miraval sale, matching Pitt's legal intensity and showing that neither team seems willing to back down or give up. It seems this ex-Hollywood couple could be in it for the long haul, of divorce, that is.

However, Pitt and Jolie have both been quoted speaking about their family during their divorce. With Pitt speaking to GQ Style in 2017, saying: "Our focus is that everyone come out stronger and better people — there is no other outcome," and Jolie telling the BBC in 2017: "And we’ll get through this time and hopefully be a stronger family for it.” Hopefully, with time, this can be their reality.