1 BIRD, MARELLA, RHOW,

LINCENBERG, DROOKS & NESSIM, LLP

2 John V. Berlinski (State Bar No. 208537)
[email protected]
3 Julia B. Cherlow (State Bar No. 290538)
[email protected]
4 1875 Century Park East, 23rd Fl.
Los Angeles, CA 90067
5 Telephone: (310) 201-2100
Facsimile: (310) 201-2110
6
WACHTELL, LIPTON, ROSEN & KATZ
7 Jonathan M. Moses (admitted pro hac vice)
Adam L. Goodman (admitted pro hac vice)
8 Won S. Shin (pro hac vice application forthcoming)
Jessica L. Layden (admitted pro hac vice)
9 Ioannis D. Drivas (admitted pro hac vice)
51 West 52nd Street
10 New York, NY 10019
Telephone: (212) 403-1000
11 Facsimile: (212) 403-2000

12 Attorneys for Plaintiffs and Cross-Defendants

William B. Pitt and Mondo Bongo, LLC and
13 Cross-Defendant Warren Grant

14 SUPERIOR COURT OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA

COUNTY OF LOS ANGELES, CENTRAL DISTRICT
15
WILLIAM B. PITT, an individual, and Case No. 22STCV06081
16 MONDO BONGO, LLC, a California limited

17 liability company, WILLIAM B. PITT AND MONDO

BONGO, LLC’S REQUEST FOR
18 Plaintiffs, JUDICIAL NOTICE IN SUPPORT OF
DEMURRER TO CROSS-COMPLAINT
19 v.
OF TENUTE DEL MONDO B.V.;
MEMORANDUM OF POINTS AND
20 ANGELINA JOLIE, et al.,
AUTHORITIES
Defendants.
21
Filed concurrently with Demurrer,
22 Declaration, and Proposed Order
and RELATED CROSS-ACTIONS.
23 Judge: Hon. Lia Martin
Dept: 3
24 Date: April 30, 2025
Time: 9:00 a.m.
25
Reservation ID: 814483696267
26 Action Filed: February 17, 2022
Trial Date: Not yet set
27

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PITT AND MONDO BONGO’S REQUEST FOR JUDICIAL NOTICE IN SUPPORT OF

DEMURRER TO CROSS-COMPLAINT OF TENUTE
 1 TO ALL PARTIES AND THEIR COUNSEL OF RECORD:
2 PLEASE TAKE NOTICE that, pursuant to Sections 452 and 453 of the California
3 Evidence Code and Rule 3.1306 of the California Rules of Court, Plaintiffs and Cross-Defendants

4 WILLIAM B. PITT and MONDO BONGO, LLC respectfully request that this Court take judicial

5 notice of the following documents:

6 1. The First Amended Cross-Complaint filed by Nouvel in this action, a true and correct copy

7 of which is attached to the concurrently filed declaration of Julia B. Cherlow (the

8 “Cherlow Declaration”) as Exhibit A;

9 2. A Motion to Quash Service of Summons filed by Tenute del Mondo B.V. in this action, a

10 true and correct copy of which is attached as Exhibit B to the Cherlow Declaration;

11 3. An email with attachments dated September 20, 2021 from Roland Venturini to William B.

12 Pitt and Warren Grant, copying Reynald LecanuFayet, produced in this action by Plaintiffs

13 with the Bates stamp WBP_00012596, a true and correct copy of which is attached as

14 Exhibit C to the Cherlow Declaration;

15 4. A letter dated December 14, 1972 from U.S. Sen. Alan Bible to 39 governors and 10

16 governors-elect, a true and correct copy of which is attached as Exhibit D to the Cherlow

17 Declaration;

18 5. A letter dated September 20, 2023 from the Office of the Public Prosecutor at Draguignan
19 Judicial Court to Roland Venturini, with a certified English translation, a true and correct

20 copy of which is attached as Exhibit E to the Cherlow Declaration; and

21 6. An interview with Damian McKinney, CEO of Stoli Group, in Le Figaro, dated May 28,

22 2022, with a certified English translation, a true and correct copy of which is attached as

23 Exhibit F to the Cherlow Declaration.

24 This request is based on this notice, the accompanying memorandum of points and

25 authorities, the concurrently filed declaration of Julia B. Cherlow, and all other documents, filings,

26 pleadings, and evidence before this Court.

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PITT AND MONDO BONGO’S REQUEST FOR JUDICIAL NOTICE IN SUPPORT OF
DEMURRER TO CROSS-COMPLAINT OF TENUTE
 1 DATED: August 13, 2024 By: /s/ John V. Berlinski
BIRD, MARELLA, RHOW,
2 LINCENBERG, DROOKS & NESSIM, LLP
John V. Berlinski
3
WACHTELL, LIPTON, ROSEN & KATZ
4 Jonathan M. Moses (admitted pro hac vice)
Adam L. Goodman (admitted pro hac vice)
5 Won S. Shin (pro hac vice application forthcoming)
Jessica L. Layden (admitted pro hac vice)
6 Ioannis D. Drivas (admitted pro hac vice)
7 Attorneys for Plaintiffs and Cross-Defendants
William B. Pitt and Mondo Bongo, LLC
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PITT AND MONDO BONGO’S REQUEST FOR JUDICIAL NOTICE IN SUPPORT OF
DEMURRER TO CROSS-COMPLAINT OF TENUTE
 1 INTRODUCTION
2 Plaintiffs and Cross-Defendants William B. Pitt and Mondo Bongo, LLC respectfully

3 request that the Court take judicial notice of the following documents in support of their demurrer

4 to the Cross-Complaint of Tenute del Mondo, B.V.:

5 1. The First Amended Cross-Complaint filed by Nouvel in this action, a true and correct copy

6 of which is attached to the concurrently filed declaration of Julia B. Cherlow (the

7 “Cherlow Declaration”) as Exhibit A;

8 2. A Motion to Quash Service of Summons filed by Tenute del Mondo B.V. in this action, a

9 true and correct copy of which is attached as Exhibit B to the Cherlow Declaration;

10 3. An email with attachments dated September 20, 2021 from Roland Venturini to William B.

11 Pitt and Warren Grant, copying Reynald LecanuFayet, produced in this action by Plaintiffs

12 with the Bates stamp WBP_00012596, a true and correct copy of which is attached as

13 Exhibit C to the Cherlow Declaration;

14 4. A letter dated December 14, 1972 from U.S. Sen. Alan Bible to 39 governors and 10

15 governors-elect, a true and correct copy of which is attached as Exhibit D to the Cherlow

16 Declaration;

17 5. A letter dated September 20, 2023 from the Office of the Public Prosecutor at Draguignan

18 Judicial Court to Roland Venturini, with a certified English translation, a true and correct
19 copy of which is attached as Exhibit E to the Cherlow Declaration; and

20 6. An interview with Damian McKinney, CEO of Stoli Group, in Le Figaro, dated May 28,

21 2022, with a certified English translation, a true and correct copy of which is attached as

22 Exhibit F to the Cherlow Declaration.

23 ARGUMENT
24 Pursuant to Section 453 of the California Evidence Code, a “trial court shall take judicial

25 notice of any matter specified in Section 452 [of the Evidence Code] if a party requests it and:

26 (a) [g]ives each adverse party sufficient notice of the request, through the pleadings or otherwise,

27 to enable such adverse party to prepare to meet the request; and (b) [f]urnishes the court with

28 sufficient information to enable it to take judicial notice of the matter.”

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PITT AND MONDO BONGO’S REQUEST FOR JUDICIAL NOTICE IN SUPPORT OF
DEMURRER TO CROSS-COMPLAINT OF TENUTE
 1 The Court should take judicial notice of Exhibits A (the publicly available pleading filed

2 by Nouvel in this action) and Exhibit B (a publicly available motion to quash filed by Tenute in

3 this action), as Section 452(d) of the California Evidence Code provides that judicial notice may

4 be taken of the records of “any court of this state.” And because Tenute nominally owns 100% of

5 the interest in Nouvel, ¶ 10,1 with whom it shares counsel in this action, it cannot “reasonably . . .

6 dispute” the allegations in either pleading, Cal. Evid. Code § 452(h). See Pang v. Beverly Hosp.,

7 Inc., 79 Cal. App. 4th 986, 989–90 (2000) (“[W]e may consider matters that may be judicially

8 noticed, including a party’s admissions or concessions which cannot reasonably be

9 controverted.”); Lewis v. City of Hayward, 177 Cal. App. 3d 103, 111 n.3 (1986) (“Judicial notice

10 of undisputed facts capable of accurate determination is appropriate.”).

11 The Court should take judicial notice of Exhibit C, a September 20, 2021 email with

12 attachments that Tenute quotes from and summarizes in its Cross-Complaint. See ¶ 69 (discussing

13 a “September 2021 spreadsheet . . . sent from Venturini to Pitt and Grant” and quoting Venturini

14 as stating that Chateau Miraval would need to charge Miraval Studios “only 30,000 euros in rent

15 per year,” “well below market prices”). As such, this exhibit is “not reasonably subject to

16 dispute,” Cal. Evid. Code § 452(h), and the Court should take judicial notice of it in its entirety.

17 See Ingram v. Flippo, 74 Cal. App. 4th 1280, 1285 n.3 (1999) (taking judicial notice of letter and

18 media release that “complaint excerpted quotes from . . . and summarized parts of”); Salvaty v.
19 Falcon Cable Television, 165 Cal. App. 3d 798, 800 n.1 (1985) (“Given the references to the

20 agreement in the complaint, [defendants] were entitled to present the trial court with the complete

21 document.”).

22 The Court should take judicial notice of Exhibit D, a letter dated December 14, 1972 from

23 U.S. Senator Alan Bible to 39 governors and 10 governors-elect. This letter is part of the

24 legislative history for Cal. Penal Code § 496 (see Senate Bill No. 1068, 1972 Reg. Sess.) and, as

25 such, is properly subject to judicial notice as an “[o]fficial act[] of the legislative, executive, and

26 judicial departments of the United States and of any state of the United States.” Cal. Evid. Code

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Citations to ¶ are of Tenute’s Cross-Complaint.
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PITT AND MONDO BONGO’S REQUEST FOR JUDICIAL NOTICE IN SUPPORT OF
DEMURRER TO CROSS-COMPLAINT OF TENUTE
 1 § 452(c); see Citizens of Human., LLC v. Costco Wholesale Corp., 171 Cal. App. 4th 1, 18 n.11

2 (2009), disapproved of on other grounds by Kwikset Corp. v. Superior Ct., 51 Cal. 4th 310 (2011)

3 (taking judicial notice of the legislative history of Senate Bill No. 1068); see also Seviour-Iloff v.

4 LaPaille, 80 Cal. App. 5th 427, 435 n.3 (2022), as modified on denial of reh’g (July 21, 2022)

5 (taking judicial notice of legislative materials); Fremont Indem. Co. v. Fremont Gen. Corp., 148

6 Cal. App. 4th 97, 129 n.13 (2007) (same); People v. Morales, 25 Cal. App. 5th 502, 511 n.7

7 (2018) (same).

8 The Court should take judicial notice of Exhibit E, a letter from the Office of the Public

9 Prosecutor at Draguignan Judicial Court to Venturini. This letter, sent by a public official in

10 France, as well as its confirmation of the dismissal of a criminal complaint filed by Nouvel in

11 France, are “not reasonably subject to dispute.” Cal. Evid. Code § 452(h). Accordingly, the Court

12 should take judicial notice of both the letter and the fact of the dismissal of Nouvel’s criminal

13 complaint. See Friends of Shingle Springs Interchange, Inc. v. Cnty. of El Dorado, 200 Cal. App.

14 4th 1470, 1484 (2011) (court may take judicial notice of undisputed facts contained within

15 documents).

16 Finally, the Court should take judicial notice of Exhibit F, an interview with Damian

17 McKinney, CEO of Stoli Group, in Le Figaro, dated May 28, 2022. The existence of, and

18 statements reported in, this publicly available news interview are “not reasonably subject to
19 dispute” and are therefore properly subject to judicial notice. Cal. Evid. Code § 452(h); see

20 Hurvitz v. Hoefflin, 84 Cal. App. 4th 1232, 1235 n.1 (2000) (taking judicial notice of press

21 clippings); Sonoma Cnty. Emps.’ Ret. Assn. v. Superior Ct., 198 Cal. App. 4th 986, 1006 (2011)

22 (same).

23 CONCLUSION
24 For the foregoing reasons, Pitt and Mondo Bongo respectfully request that the Court take

25 judicial notice of Exhibits A through F in support of their concurrently filed demurrer to Tenute’s

26 Cross-Complaint.

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PITT AND MONDO BONGO’S REQUEST FOR JUDICIAL NOTICE IN SUPPORT OF
DEMURRER TO CROSS-COMPLAINT OF TENUTE
 1 DATED: August 13, 2024 By: /s/ John V. Berlinski
BIRD, MARELLA, RHOW,
2 LINCENBERG, DROOKS & NESSIM, LLP
John V. Berlinski
3
WACHTELL, LIPTON, ROSEN & KATZ
4 Jonathan M. Moses (admitted pro hac vice)
Adam L. Goodman (admitted pro hac vice)
5 Won S. Shin (pro hac vice application forthcoming)
Jessica L. Layden (admitted pro hac vice)
6 Ioannis D. Drivas (admitted pro hac vice)
7 Attorneys for Plaintiffs and Cross-Defendants
William B. Pitt and Mondo Bongo, LLC
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PITT AND MONDO BONGO’S REQUEST FOR JUDICIAL NOTICE IN SUPPORT OF
DEMURRER TO CROSS-COMPLAINT OF TENUTE
 1 PROOF OF SERVICE
2 Pitt v. Jolie
Case No. 22STCV06081
3
STATE OF CALIFORNIA, COUNTY OF LOS ANGELES
4
At the time of service, I was over 18 years of age and not a party to this action. I am
5 employed in the County of Los Angeles, State of California. My business address is 1875 Century
Park East, 23rd Floor, Los Angeles, CA 90067-2561.
6
On August 13, 2024, I served the following document(s) described as WILLIAM B.
7 PITT AND MONDO BONGO, LLC’S REQUEST FOR JUDICIAL NOTICE IN SUPPORT
OF DEMURRER TO CROSS-COMPLAINT OF TENUTE DEL MONDO B.V.;
8 MEMORANDUM OF POINTS AND AUTHORITIES on the interested parties in this action as
follows:
9
SEE ATTACHED SERVICE LIST
10
BY E-MAIL OR ELECTRONIC TRANSMISSION: I caused the document(s) to be
11 sent from e-mail address [email protected] to the persons at the e-mail addresses listed
in the Service List. I did not receive, within a reasonable time after the transmission, any
12 electronic message or other indication that the transmission was unsuccessful.

13 I declare under penalty of perjury under the laws of the State of California that the
foregoing is true and correct.
14
Executed on August 13, 2024, at Los Angeles, California.
15

16
/s/ Karen M. Minutelli
17 Karen M. Minutelli
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PROOF OF SERVICE
 1 SERVICE LIST
Pitt v. Jolie
2 Case No. 22STCV06081
3 Paul D. Murphy Laura W. Brill
Daniel N. Csillag Daniel Barlava
4 MURPHY ROSEN LLP Matthew Bernstein
100 Wilshire Boulevard, Suite 1300 KENDALL BRILL & KELLY LLP
5 Santa Monica, CA 90401 10100 Santa Monica Boulevard, Suite 1725
Telephone: (310) 899-3300 Los Angeles, CA 90067-4013
6 Email: [email protected] Telephone: (310) 556-2700
Email: [email protected] Email: [email protected]
7 Counsel for Defendant and Cross- Email: [email protected]
Complainant Angelina Jolie Email: [email protected]
8 Counsel appearing specially to challenge
jurisdiction on behalf of Cross-Defendants
9 Roland Venturini and Gary Bradbury
10 Joe Tuffaha Keith R. Hummel
Prashanth Chennakesavan Justin C. Clarke
11 LTL ATTORNEYS LLP Jonathan Mooney
300 South Grand Avenue, Suite 1400 CRAVATH, SWAINE & MOORE LLP
12 Los Angeles, CA 90071 Worldwide Plaza
Telephone: (213) 612-8900 825 Eighth Avenue
13 Email: [email protected] New York, NY 10019
Email: Telephone: (212) 474-1000
14 [email protected] Email: [email protected]
Counsel for Defendant and Cross- Email: [email protected]
15 Complainant Nouvel, LLC and Defendant Email: [email protected]
Tenute del Mondo B.V., and specially Counsel for Defendant and Cross-
16 appearing to challenge jurisdiction on behalf Complainant Nouvel, LLC and Defendant
of Defendants Yuri Shefler and Alexey Tenute del Mondo B.V., and specially
17 Oliynik appearing to challenge jurisdiction on behalf
of Defendants Yuri Shefler and Alexey
18 Oliynik
19 Mark Drooks S. Gale Dick
Debbie Throckmorton Phoebe King
20 Assistant to Mark Drooks Randall Bryer
BIRD, MARELLA, RHOW, LINCENBERG, COHEN & GRESSER LLP
21 DROOKS & NESSIM, LLP 800 Third Avenue
1875 Century Park East, 23rd Floor New York, NY 10022
22 Los Angeles, CA 90067-2561 Telephone: (212) 707-7263
Telephone: 310 201-2100 Email: [email protected]
23 Email: [email protected] Email: [email protected]
Email: [email protected] Email: [email protected]
24 Counsel appearing specially to challenge Counsel appearing specially to challenge
jurisdiction on behalf of Cross-Defendants jurisdiction on behalf of Cross-Defendants
25 Marc-Olivier Perrin, SAS Miraval Provence, Marc-Olivier Perrin, SAS Miraval Provence,
Familles Perrin, SAS Petrichor, Vins et Familles Perrin, SAS Petrichor, Vins et
26 Domaines Perrin SC, SASU Le Domaine, and Domaines Perrin SC, SASU Le Domaine,
SAS Distilleries de la Riviera and SAS Distilleries de la Riviera
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PROOF OF SERVICE