Brad Pitt and his non-profit charity organisation Make It Right have been sued by the victims of Hurricane Katrina in a class action lawsuit that alleged that the foundation had constructed faulty homes for them. The move has become a big blow to the actor and his foundation. They are required to hand over 100,000 sensitive documents. The legal battle has been going on for seven years.
According to a report in The U.S Sun, Pitt has been trying to avoid getting deposed after his name got mentioned as a witness by Ron Austin Law, the homeowners' legal team that won the case. Pitt's legal team has filed a motion to block the move, citing interference with his shooting schedule while claiming that he has no relevant information to provide.
This motion, filed in April last year, was decreed by a judge to be moot in June, given that the discovery process is still ongoing.
Additionally, the Make It Right legal team has requested more time to review the foundation's documents and electronic devices that, according to the report, included "approximately 195 boxes, 13 filing cabinets, the IT server, and 13 desktops and laptops. These contents fill three rooms."
Pitt's foundation had built 109 houses in New Orleans' poorest area, Lower Ninth Ward, after Hurricane Katrina caused significant devastation there in 2005.
But the class action suit reveals that the houses weren't up to par and that the homeowners have been struggling for years to get the foundation to do the necessary repairs. The homeowners accused Make It Right of using defective materials for its ambitious building project.
