Angelina Jolie submitted official paperwork to request that the private judge who oversees Brad Pitt’s divorce proceedings be disqualified for failing to complete his business relationship with the ex-lawyers.
The duo, who share six children together: Maddox, 19, Pax, 16, Zahara, 15, Shiloh, 14, Knox, 12, and Vivienne, 12, have been locked in a divorce battle since 2016 when it was officially revealed that they called it quitting after roughly 10 years together.
In a submission to the Superior Court in Los Angeles, Jolie states that Judge John W. Ouderkirk should be fired from the divorce case because he was late and did not get enough about other cases he was hired for involved Pitt Advocate Anne C. Kiley.
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The submission said that during the Jolie-Pitt trial, Ouderkirk “failed to disclose the cases that demonstrate the current, ongoing, repeated client relationship between the judge and Respondent’s attorney.”
It goes on to say that Pitt’s lawyer “actively advocated for Judge Ouderkirk’s financial interests in moving – over the opposition party’s opposition – to extend his appointment (and his ability to continue to pay fees) in a high profile business. “
Pitt and Jolie, like other high-profile couples, pay for a private judge in their divorce case to keep many of their applications and personal and financial details sealed within them, although some legal moves must be made within the ordinary court proceedings.
Angelina Jolie attended the “Go Behind the Scenes with the Walt Disney Studios”, parcel at the 2019 D23 Expo, Saturday, August 24, 2019, in Anaheim, Calif.
(Richard Shotwell / Invision / AP)
However, Jolie notes in her submission that simply because she uses a private judge does not mean that he or she is not subject to the same rules of disclosure and conflict of interest that all other judges must follow.
The custody says “it does not matter if Judge Ouderkirk is in fact biased. Under California law, disqualification is required as long as a person is aware of the facts’ may reasonably maintain a doubt ‘about Judge Ouderkirk’s ability to remain impartial.’
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Jolie’s lawyers have sought in private proceedings to disqualify Ouderkirk himself, but the prosecution says Pitt’s side has insisted on keeping him.
“As stated in the custody, all of my clients are requesting a fair trial based on facts, with no special benefits extended to either side,” Jolie’s attorney, Samantha Bley DeJean, said in an email to The Associated Press. “The only way law enforcement can trust the process is for everyone involved to ensure transparency and impartiality.”
Angelina Jolie asked the judge in her and divorce proceedings of Brad and Pitt to disqualify himself.
(Evan Agostini / Invision / AP, file)
Pitt and Jolie were eventually divorced, and she dropped “Pitt” from her name, in April of 2019, after her lawyers asked for a bifurcated verdict, meaning two married people can be declared single, while other issues, including finances and child care, stay.
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Because most of the documents are closed, it is not clear what issues remain unresolved, but Jolie submitted papers in 2018 that said Pitt did not pay enough child support, which his attorneys disputed, calling the filing a attempt to manipulate media coverage of the split.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
