Brad Pitt‘s request for an emergency hearing to have all his and Angelina Jolie divorce documents sealed has been denied, PEOPLE has confirmed.
A judge ruled on Wednesday that the filing did not meet the requirements for sealing details at this time. Both Pitt and Jolie’s attorneys were present in court for the decision.
Laura Wasser, Jolie’s attorney, says the actress does not oppose sealing documents to prevent details from becoming public, but that Pitt’s team didn’t consult with them before their hearing, which is why she opposed it at this time.
But a source with knowledge of the situation disagrees, telling PEOPLE, “Brad Pitt’s team repeatedly asked Angelina’s camp to agree to seal custody proceedings. When, instead, they filed what they did on Monday and put the children’s privacy at risk, Brad moved forward with the motion to seal all future proceedings.”
The source adds that Jolie’s team “was given notice of this motion, and could have simply agreed to it. They chose not to.”
However, a second source close to the situation says that Pitt’s team “forced Monday’s filing by trying repeatedly to break the agreement” and that “Angelina is just honoring the therapist recommendations.” Ultimately, the second source says, “Everyone agrees the children can only benefit from a healthy relationship with their dad.”
The second source also disputes the notion that only Pitt is seeking privacy, noting the fact that today’s filing, like Jolie’s, was public: “A party who wishes to keep things private either opts not to file them with the court, or files them under seal.”
That Pitt’s side had asked repeatedly for the records to be sealed is also under dispute, with the second source saying, “I don’t know where they got that from. Laura has said she’s not opposed to sealing documents.”
Moving forward, the first source says if Jolie is “now agreeable to sealing the file, that’s certainly good news. But at this moment, no one within Brad’s circle knows that to be true, and it’s unfortunate that it took him filing a motion to get them hopefully to do what’s in the best interests of the children and the entire family.”
While the two sides continue to hash out legal custody, per previous agreement, the couple’s six children remain with Jolie, with Pitt granted visitation accompanied by a therapist.
Source: People.com
