American actress Angelina Jolie succeeded in winning her legal fight against the release of private messages connected to ex-husband Brad Pitt last 5 May.

A Los Angeles judge issued an order denying a motion from Pitt’s lawyers requiring Jolie to deliver 22 messages related to their winery case, which her legal team argued were protected communications.

In the decision, Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Cindy Panuco stated that Pitt “has not met his burden” to show the communications were exempted from protection. The judge further noted that while additional discovery could potentially yield more facts, Pitt’s present evidence failed to rebut Jolie’s claims.

“This is an important victory for Ms. Jolie,” Jolie’s attorney Paul Murphy said.

“This is part of Mr. Pitt’s pattern of demanding control over anything Angelina, including control over her communications with her own attorneys. We are extremely gratified that both the Court of Appeal and the trial court ultimately put a stop to it,” he added.

Judge Panuco also denied Jolie’s request for worth of $33,000 in sanctions, ruling that Pitt’s motion was not without substantial justification.

The feud started in 2022, when Pitt filed a lawsuit over Jolie’s sale of her share in Château Miraval to Tenute del Mondo based on an alleged prior agreement, which Jolie denied.

Jolie has since claimed that the actor-producer has been waging a vindictive war against her.