Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie Agree to Handle Divorce Privately

— -- Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie will be handling their divorce privately, they said in a joint statement obtained by ABC News on Monday.

The stars said that the new agreement, which involves a private judge, was made in the best interest of their family.

"The parties and their counsel have signed agreements to preserve the privacy rights of their children and family by keeping all court documents confidential and engaging a private judge to make any necessary legal decisions and to facilitate the expeditious resolution of any remaining issues," the statement read. "The parents are committed to act as a united front to effectuate recovery and reunification."

The two actors were together for more than a decade and married for two years before Jolie filed for divorce last September. They have six children: Maddox, 15, Pax, 13, Zahara, 12, Shiloh, 10, and twins Knox and Vivienne, 8.

Last month, a judge denied a request by Pitt, 53, to seal documents in his custody battle with Jolie, 41. Pitt said in court documents that he was "extremely concerned" that if the records were not sealed, his children's privacy rights would be irreparably damaged. Jolie's attorneys, however, fired back that Pitt's request was merely a "thinly-veiled attempt to shield himself, rather than the minor children, from the public view."

News of the estranged couple's newly-formed agreement was first reported by the Associated Press.