Angelina Jolie is firing back at her ex-husband Brad Pitt … as he attempts to get his hands on her old tax returns … TMZ has learned.
The actress filed new court docs in her never-ending war with Brad over Chateau Miraval — the French estate they purchased while married — saying Brad’s effort to get her old financial and tax records as part of the ongoing litigation stems from his “continued mischaracterization and selective quoting” of her words.
In the legal battle, Brad claims he spent a ton of money and time turning Miraval into a successful winery … but says Angelina broke an agreement they had when she sold her stake in Miraval to Stoli — an alcohol company — without getting his approval.
Angelina denies she needed Brad to sign off.
She disputes Brad’s claims that she put her entire financial condition at issue in the case just because she said she sold her stake because she was seeking “financial independence.” She says that was clearly about seeking such independence from him … and not a commentary on her financial condition overall. But Brad believes her comments and the nature of the legal dispute mean she should have to turn over her tax returns and other financial records from 2017 to 2019.
The actress is pushing back, saying “separating from one’s ex-husband is categorically different from allegations that one is suffering from general financial distress.”
Her lawyers insist the real issue “is not whether Angelina needed the money – the issue is that she was trying to untangle her life and her finances from her controlling and abusive ex-husband.”
Brad has consistently denied Angelina’s claims of abuse.
Angelina said she already voluntarily gave Brad tax returns for other years … and going back any further for past tax returns would be an invasion of her privacy.
For his part, Brad argued the records from 2017 to 2019 are relevant to the case. His lawyers, however, say Angelina cannot claim Brad “economically cornered one of Hollywood’s most successful actresses while refusing to produce the basic income and profit-participation documents needed to test that claim.”
The lawyer added, “But if [Angelina] had substantial income and other resources during the relevant period, evidence thereof would directly undermine her claim that [Brad] left her with no meaningful alternative but to sell her interests in their shared property to Stoli.”
The papers added that Angelina “is a globally recognized actress who had commanded extraordinary compensation for major studio work, including reported compensation of approximately $33 million for ‘Maleficent,’ which made her Forbes’ highest-paid actress for that year.”
Brad’s lawyer said, “Given [Angelina’s] own allegations that she lacked meaningful economic alternatives, [Brad and his team] are entitled to” her financial docs.