Pitt punts for Schillings as Harbottle & Lewis acts for Jolie
Two of London’s finest media law firms have been chosen to act for their respective halves of Hollywood’s former power couple ‘Brangelina’, according to a report this morning.
For those of you who have been living under a rock for the past few weeks, superstar thespians Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie are parting ways. It didn’t take them long to engage lawyers this side of the pond.
According to The Brief, Pitt has enlisted the help of international reputation and privacy firm Schillings, while his soon-to-be ex-wife Jolie punted for West End media outfit Harbottle & Lewis.
As rumours swirl about the cause of the split, both Pitt and Jolie are — according to the report — “keen to see that media coverage is kept to a minimum”.
Schillings has represented a number of high profile clients, including Lance Armstrong, Ryan Giggs and JK Rowling. Founded in 1984, the single-office firm is headed up by founding partner Keith Schilling. Meanwhile Mayfair-based Harbottle & Lewis — which represented Prince Charles during the News of the World phone hacking scandal — was founded in 1955 and has around 80 lawyers under its roof.
Over in the United States, it is understood Jolie has retained divorce attorney Laura Wasser to oversee the split. The 48-year-old — who was once described by celebrity gossip website TMZ as the “disso queen” (disso meaning marriage dissolution) — has represented the likes of Johnny Depp, Ryan Reynolds and Christina Aguilera. Based in Los Angeles, the divorce specialist works for law firm Wasser, Cooperman & Mandles, which was started by her father in 1975.
Meanwhile Pitt is understood to have chosen family law specialist Lance Spiegel. With former clients such as Charlie Sheen, Michael Jackson and Russell Simmons, Spiegel — who is a lawyer at Beverly Hills outfit Young, Spiegel & Lee — has, according to his firm profile, “been involved in many high profile, and complex family law matters.”