No group of people seems to attract lawsuits quite like celebrities do. Every other day it seems like one of them is either suing or being sued. We’re not even halfway through the third month of the year and there are already a number of celebrity lawsuits underway. Here’s a list of some of the stars who are going through legal drama so far this year.
[Center image: Shutterstock]
Kanye West v. ‘Coinye’
There are a group of developers who came out with a form of digital currency to rival Bitcoins, and they decided to name it Coinye. However, they used Kanye’s name and likeness without his permission, so you know Yeezy hit them with a lawsuit real quick. His lawyers filed cease and desist orders and it seems likely that Kanye will win his case.
Wig Maker v. Nicki Minaj
Terrence Davidson, a former wig designer for Nicki Minaj, is suing the rapper and Pink Personality LLC for “breaking implied contracts, reneging on discussions to launch a reality TV show and misappropriating his wig designs.” He claims that he turned down a contract for a reality show at the urging of a Minaj representative because they were discussing launching their own joint show and wig line, but then the team left him hanging. Davidson also claims that Minaj stole his wig designs to launch her own line.
Chipotle v. Frank Ocean
Chipotle is suing Frank Ocean for accepting an advance to record a song for a commercial and then backing out of the contract. Chipotle paid Ocean $212,500 to record a song entitled “Pure Imagination,” with the rest of the money to come after the completion of the project, but Ocean backed out without recording the song. His teams says:
“When Frank was asked to participate in this project, Chipotle’s representatives told him that the thrust of the campaign was to promote responsible farming. There was no Chipotle reference or logo in the initial presentation, and Chipotle told Frank that was an intentional element of the campaign. Frank was also promised that he’d have the right to approve the master and all advertising.”
It would be a little odd for Ocean to expect that an ad campaign created by Chipotle would not include a Chipotle logo … but that’s rich folks’ business.
Photographer v. Rihanna
The woes from her “S&M” video won’t cease. Rihanna, who faced a plagiarism lawsuit from David LaChapelle for this video (and settled out of court in 2011), is now being sued by photographer Philipp Paulus for plagiarism. He claims that scenes from the video mirror his fashion series “Paperworld.” He’s filed for an injunction and is seeking damages after failing to settle with Rihanna and Universal Music out of court. If he wins, the video can be banned from YouTube and television.
Rihanna v. Accounting Firm
Rihanna is also on the other side of the legal bench and is suing her former accountant. She claims that Peter Gouins and the firm Berdon LLP had falsely advised her to buy a $7 million home at a time when her finances were not in a good place. According to Page Six:
“The defendants advised Ms. Fenty by email that purchasing a home in Los Angeles `would be a good investment’ despite knowing Ms. Fenty was experiencing financial difficulties,” wrote Rihanna’s lawyer Edward Estrada.
“Ms. Fenty’s cash investment positions had decreased from over $11 million in January 2009 to approximately $2 million at the end of 2009.”
Furthermore, according to the songbird’s lawyers, Gouins was aware the house she was buying was rotting from water and mold damage.