Coming to terms. Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie will not move forward to trial over the custody of their six children as the pair have reached a new agreement, Us Weekly can confirm.
“A custody arrangement was agreed to weeks ago and has been signed by both parties and the judge,” Jolie’s lawyer, Samantha Bley DeJean, told Us in a statement on Friday, November 30. “The agreement, which is based on the recommendations of the child custody evaluator, eliminates the need for a trial. The filing and details of the agreement are confidential to protect the best interests of the children.”
A Pitt insider tells Us of the agreement: “Brad and Angelina will have joint physical and legal custody of the children. Over a period of the next six to eight weeks, the monitored visits will come to a conclusion. The children will immediately begin to have overnight visits with their father. The monitors will be in place for those first overnight visits, and this was done at Brad’s request. Brad recognizes this is going to be a change from what the norm had been and wants to make the transition as smooth as possible.”
The exes, who have been engaged in a custody battle ever since she filed for divorce in September 2016, share Maddox, 17, Pax, 15, Zahara, 13, Shiloh, 12, and twins Knox and Vivienne, 10.
Us obtained documents in November that stated Pitt, 54, and Jolie, 43, were set to go to trial on December 4. The Ocean’s Eleven actor sought joint legal and physical custody, while the Maleficent star wanted physical custody.
The Mr. & Mrs. Smith costars requested for Judge John Ouderkirk to remain on their case until December 31, 2019, according to court documents obtained by The Blast. The judge, who officiated their wedding, was initially set to stay on the matter until June 30.
Us reported last month that Pitt pleaded with his estranged wife to settle the custody dispute outside of court. “He reached out hoping to persuade Angie that the hearing will cause lasting psychological damage to their children,” a source told Us. “There will be no winners, no matter what the judge decides.”
The insider insisted that Jolie was “not backing down” at the time, though a source close to the Lara Croft: Tomb Raider actress assured Us that both were “working together to reach a settlement outside of court.”
As of September, an insider told Us Pitt had “the children every other day,” adding that he saw them “four hours a day on school days and 12 hours on nonschool days.”
