Make It Right Foundation Lawsuit: Brad Pitt and the $20.5M Settlement

The Make It Right Foundation lawsuit is a class action filed in 2018 by Lower Ninth Ward homeowners who say the houses Brad Pitt’s post-Katrina charity built for them were defectively constructed and are rotting around them. A $20.5 million settlement announced in August 2022 collapsed because the nonprofit that agreed to pay it did not have the money. As of mid-2026, no homeowner has been paid, the case is active, and a class certification hearing is scheduled for August 26, 2026.¹

Who Sued and What They Alleged

On September 7, 2018, homeowners Jennifer Decuir and Lloyd Francis filed a class action in Orleans Parish Civil District Court, case number 18-8977, styled Lloyd Francis, et al. v. Make It Right Foundation, et al. The suit named the foundation, its board members, and Brad Pitt personally. Ron Austin of the Ron Austin Law Firm represents the homeowners.²³

The complaint alleges unfair trade practices, breach of contract, and fraud. According to the plaintiffs, the foundation and its leadership knew for years that homes had structural and construction problems and said nothing. When residents did ask for repairs, the suit alleges, Make It Right pressured them to sign nondisclosure agreements and binding arbitration clauses, sometimes under duress, without explaining what rights they were giving up.²⁴

The underlying construction defects are extensive. Residents have reported mold, rotting wood, foundation and piling movement, roof leaks and failures, electrical and plumbing malfunctions, and poor ventilation producing dangerous indoor air. The modern, flat-roof designs performed especially poorly in Louisiana’s climate, and many roofs eventually had to be replaced with pitched ones. By 2022, independent inspections found only about six of the original 109 homes were in reasonably good condition. Two had been demolished. Six were abandoned.⁵⁶

Austin has called the project “goodwill gone wrong” and “well-intentioned, horrible execution,” saying the foundation “overpromised and under-delivered.”⁷

Why Brad Pitt Is Still a Defendant

Pitt founded Make It Right in 2007 to rebuild housing in the Lower Ninth Ward. When the class action was filed, his attorneys moved to dismiss him from the case. In October 2019, Civil District Court Judge Rachael Johnson denied the motion, ruling that Pitt and other foundation directors could be sued over the shoddy construction allegations.⁸

The court ordered Pitt to produce roughly 100,000 documents spanning about 195 boxes, 13 filing cabinets, an IT server, and 13 computers. His team’s separate effort to block his deposition, citing his filming schedule and a lack of relevant knowledge, was also denied.⁹

A spokesperson for Pitt said the actor “was never under any obligation to donate his own money, attend fundraisers or solicit contributions from donors.” Pitt testified under oath that he had been too busy to participate in any fundraising for the settlement.¹⁰

The $20.5 Million Settlement and Why It Collapsed

In August 2022, attorneys announced a $20.5 million settlement. Every one of the 107 remaining Make It Right homeowners would receive $25,000 up front for past repair costs, with the balance (net of attorney fees) distributed according to the severity of each home’s problems. The agreement was filed in Orleans Parish Civil District Court awaiting judicial approval.¹¹

The money was not to come from Make It Right or Pitt. It was to come from Global Green USA, a Los Angeles environmental nonprofit whose New Orleans work Pitt had publicly supported in the years just before he launched Make It Right. Why Global Green stepped forward to fund a settlement in a case in which it was not a defendant was described by the New Orleans Times-Picayune as “obscure.”¹²¹⁰

Global Green did not have $20.5 million. CEO Bill Bridge told Axios that the organization had planned to raise the money using its “name, brand, and history” after signing the deal, calling the outcome the product of “miscommunication, misunderstandings, and perhaps admittedly some naivete.” Global Green’s counsel also blamed unfavorable press around Pitt’s personal life, specifically the fallout from allegations by Angelina Jolie, for hampering fundraising. Two years after the announcement, Global Green had reportedly raised about $380,000.¹³¹⁰⁶

A New Orleans judge cleared the original class action to resume, scheduled Global Green for a contempt hearing, and ordered the nonprofit to secure a surety bond.¹⁰

Where the Case Stands in 2026

The litigation is still active and no homeowner has been paid. In 2025, insurers First Mercury and TIG Insurance Company moved for partial summary judgment, arguing they had no duty to defend or indemnify the Make It Right defendants or Pitt. A trial court granted those motions in December 2025. In April 2026, the Louisiana Fourth Circuit Court of Appeal vacated that ruling on a writ application filed by Pitt, finding the summary judgment was premature because the policies did not “unambiguously preclude” coverage.¹

Discovery on the merits has not begun. A 2022 court order limited discovery to pre-certification issues, and the class certification hearing is set for August 26, 2026. Plaintiffs filed a third supplemental and amending petition in September 2025.¹

The Foundation and the Homes Today

Make It Right has been effectively defunct since around 2018. Its website went offline, its phone numbers were disconnected, and its Lower Ninth Ward and Magazine Street offices were abandoned. It has not filed a Form 990 since its 2018 fiscal year and no longer appears on the IRS list of tax-exempt organizations. Its last known filing reported roughly $22.6 million in assets against $22.4 million in liabilities, leaving net assets of about $243,000. Through a for-profit subsidiary, the foundation still owns 33 mostly vacant lots in the Lower Ninth Ward and owes thousands in delinquent property taxes; the Orleans Parish Sheriff’s Office has seized and sold at least one property for unpaid sanitation fines.⁴¹⁴

Residents who remain in the homes describe an ongoing ordeal. As of August 2025, homeowners report rotting wood, shifting foundations, mold, and failing electrical and plumbing systems. At least one home has been torn down by the city and others have been deemed uninhabitable. Some residents have turned to crowdfunding to pay for repairs they cannot afford. Robert Green, a Katrina survivor who lost his mother and granddaughter in the 2005 flooding and later bought a Make It Right home for $150,000, now displays a sign outside his deteriorating house that reads “Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie Fix My House.”¹⁵⁶

“You had a responsibility to keep your word,” Green said of Pitt, “and that’s what he reneged on.”¹⁵

1
FindLaw. Francis v. Make It Right New Orleans LLC
2
NBC News. Brad Pitt Sued by New Orleans Residents Who Say Make It Right Homes Are Defective
3
Top Class Actions. Make It Right Foundation Poor Construction Class Action Settlement
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The Lens. Brad Pitt’s Make It Right Foundation No Longer Maintaining or Paying Taxes on Remaining Properties
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Common Edge. What Went Wrong With Brad Pitt’s Make It Right
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Capital B News. Brad Pitt Hurricane Katrina Habitat for Humanity
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WKRG. Goodwill Gone Wrong: 9th Ward Homeowners Win Settlement Against Brad Pitt’s Make It Right Foundation
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NOLA.com. Brad Pitt, Others Can Be Sued Over Shoddy New Orleans Make It Right Homes, Judge Rules
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Times of India. Brad Pitt and His Non-Profit Get Sued by the Victims of Hurricane Katrina
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The Hollywood Reporter. Brad Pitt Charity Mess: Katrina Victims Stranded
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The Architect’s Newspaper. Brad Pitt Make It Right Foundation Settlement Homeowners New Orleans
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NOLA.com. Mayor Supports $5 Million Plan for Make It Right Residents
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Axios. Make It Right Lawsuit Payout Brad Pitt Foundation New Orleans Hurricane Katrina
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ProPublica. Make It Right Foundation Nonprofit Explorer
15
WDSU. Brad Pitt Make It Right New Orleans Homes Lower Ninth Ward