Angelina Jolie is “prepared to provide evidence of domestic violence” in her divorce trial against ex Brad Pitt, new reports say.
Documents obtained by The Blast allegedly show that the actress, 45, has stated that she is willing to offer ‘proof and authority’ in support of the alleged domestic violence that occurred during her two-year marriage to the star, 57.
The couple share children, Maddox, 19, Zahara, 16, Pax, 17, Shiloh, 14, and twins Knox and Vivienne, 12, and are discussing custody and financial arrangements at the trial, which will see their youngest children testify if they give permission.
Shortly after the couple filed for divorce in 2016, it was revealed that Brad was being investigated by the FBI and social services in Los Angeles amid reports that he was ‘verbally and physically abused with his children’ in a private jet, but was acquitted.
A source told MailOnline: ‘She has made similar allegations in the past that have been investigated by the authorities and have not been substantiated.’
Shock: Angelina Jolie is ‘prepared to provide evidence of domestic violence’ in her divorce trial against former Brad Pitt, new reports say
MailOnline contacted representatives of the couple for comment.
After the 2016 incident, Brad was cleared of the abuse charges by the LA County Department of Children and Family Services, as it was confirmed that he did not commit child abuse when he got into a fight with Maddox on a private jet.
In addition to detailing their allegations of domestic abuse, the documents show that the court is asking the couple’s permission for Shiloh, Knox and Vivienne to testify.
In October, the tough divorce battle hit another hurdle after the actress split from one of her high-cost lawyers.
Priya Sopori, a former LA-based federal prosecutor who has worked with Jolie’s principal attorney, Samantha DeJean, left after filing a ‘Prosecutor’s Withdrawal Notice’ at the LA Superior Court, the DailyMail.com learned.
Sopori is a partner in California’s Greenberg Glusker LLP law firm. It is not known whether Jolie – who is fighting Pitt’s efforts to win 50/50 custody of her children – fired Sopori or whether the lawyer decided to resign.
Their children: The couple shares the children, Maddox, 19, Zahara, 16, Pax, 17, Shiloh, 14, and the twins Knox and Vivienne, 12
But the change in her high-profile team at this final stage signals that Jolie’s determination to get what she wants has only been strengthened.
A source close to Jolie told DailyMail.com: ‘Angelina has been fighting tooth and nail to get what she wants in this divorce, when it comes to her children, she doesn’t give up …
“She’s paying a fortune to her legal team, so if she believes that one of her lawyers needs to go, she won’t hesitate to pull the trigger.”
It is not the first time that the Interrupted Girl star has said goodbye to a lawyer she hired during the long five-year divorce saga.
In 2018, Los Angeles divorce superstar attorney Laura Wasser – whose client list looks like a Hollywood Who’s Who – stopped working for Jolie when the actress’s legal fight with 56-year-old Pitt supposedly became too ” poisonous and unpleasant “.
Reflecting: in addition to detailing their allegations of domestic abuse, the documents show that the court is seeking permission from the couple for Shiloh, Knox and Vivienne to testify
Wasser – who represented Johnny Depp, Kim Kardashian, Ryan Reynolds, Stevie Wonder, Christina Aguilera, Ashton Kutcher and many other stars – has earned a reputation as a lawyer who tries to sting the separations by promoting a compromise between couples wars and shared custody of the children.
Therefore, it was thought at the time that Jolie’s obstinate attitude towards Pitt did not match Wasser’s more gentle and conciliatory approach.
After Wasser, Jolie hired DeJean from San Francisco, who is now the only attorney representing her in the long-running custody dispute with Pitt.
The ex-couple is dragging security experts from two continents, an entourage of personal assistants and bodyguards, a former Jolie star and an army of child psychologists and doctors to testify at a custody trial that is scheduled to be held. carried out in private.
A witness will be domestic violence expert Alyce LaViolette, who clashed with a prosecutor in a 2013 murder trial when describing the murderous Jodi Arias as a victim of abuse (photo in 2009)
Lists of witnesses presented in a Los Angeles court and seen by DailyMail.com reveal 21 people who will testify in the legal struggle of movie stars for their children, Pax, 16, Zahara, 15, Shiloh, 14, and the twins Knox and Vivienne , 12. They have a sixth child, Maddox, but he is a 19-year-old adult.
A witness will be domestic violence expert Alyce LaViolette, who clashed with a prosecutor at a murder trial in 2013 when describing the murderous Jodi Arias as a victim of abuse.
Brad also listed as witnesses his ex-wife’s personal assistant, Michael Ofstedahl, and Jolie’s friend and girlfriend, Jillian Armenante, co-star of Interrupted – a sign that Pitt is willing to do anything to win joint custody .
Pitt and Jolie fell in love notoriously on the set of Mr. & Mrs. Smith, while Pitt was still married to Jennifer Aniston. The couple married in France in 2014, after 10 years of dating, but separated two years later, in September 2016.
Angelina photographed with her children (lr): Knox, Vivienne, Pax, Shiloh, Zahara and Maddox in 2019
In the period following the initial split in 2016, the pair fought over custody and financial arrangements, with Brad arguing that he had provided more than adequate funding, but Angie demanding a larger share of his $ 300 million fortune.
A big factor in the couple’s battle is Jolie’s desire to take her children abroad.
Pitt is vehemently opposed to her transferring them to a foreign country.
In 2019, Angelina admitted: ‘I would love to live abroad and will do that as soon as my children turn 18. At the moment, I’m having to live where their father chooses to live. ‘
In June 2019, Brad – who admitted to being an alcoholic at the time of the separation, but is now recovered – secured a legal breakthrough when a judge ruled that he would have more time with his children. It is believed that he sees them every few days.
So: At the beginning of April last year, the superstars reached an agreement that will make the children participate in a more traditional school program in Los Angeles.
Children are taken back and forth in SUVs and limousines erased between their parents’ homes in Los Angeles, which are about a kilometer from each other in the wealthy suburb also inhabited by stars such as Ryan Gosling, Eva Mendes and Zac Efron .
In early April last year, the superstars reached an agreement that will have children participate in a more traditional school program in Los Angeles, marking the end of the home schooling regime. Jolie said she maintained her choice to leave Pitt.
“It was the right decision,” the actress told Vogue in June 2020.
‘I continue to focus on your (children’s) healing. Some have taken advantage of my silence, and children see lies about themselves in the media, but I remind them that they know their own truth and their own minds. ‘
The custody trial was due to start at the end of last year, but was postponed after Angelina asked for the replacement of the private judge, claiming that he “did not reveal” that he was working in other cases with one of Brad’s lawyers.