A photographer is suing Sir Rod Stewart for breach of copyright, claiming he used her image without permission.<\/p>\n
Julia McLellan, from Hatfield Peverel, has lodged a claim of \u00a39,999.99 against the singer at Chelmsford County Court.<\/p>\n
She claims that Sir Rod, 73, was not authorised to use a picture of him with a previous girlfriend at a 2015 gig.<\/p>\n
Sending the matter to trial, District Judge Stephen Hodges urged both parties to mediate as the case had “tears written all over it”.<\/p>\n
Mrs McLellan, 63, said she repeatedly asked Sir Rod’s lawyers for a fee to cover the use of the image, but they refused.<\/p>\n
She took action on behalf of McLellans agency, which she runs with her husband John, after efforts to settle the matter amicably failed.<\/p>\n
The photograph in dispute dates from the 1960s and had never been published until it was used on a video backdrop at BBC2’s Live in Hyde Park: A Festival in a Day concert.<\/p>\n
It was taken by Sir Rod’s former school friend, Christopher Southwood, but Mrs McLellan says she acquired the copyright in 2004.<\/p>\n
She claims Mr Southwood gave Sir Rod a copy of the photograph as a keepsake but said: “That’s very different from using it commercially.”<\/p>\n
In defence papers lodged with the court, Sir Rod’s team argued the court should reject Mrs McLellan’s claim for “an absurd level of damages for a totally innocent, brief and incidental use by Sir Rod of a personal snapshot as part of another, more substantial, artistic work”.<\/p>\n
Sir Rod, whose first number one album was “Every Picture Tells A Story”, states the image was one of hundreds used and it appeared for only eight seconds.<\/p>\n
Speaking after the hearing, Mrs McLellan said if she wins she will split the payout equally with Mr Southwood.<\/p>\n
District Judge Stephen Hodges said: “In terms of the totality of Sir Rod’s lifestyle, it’s a modest claim.<\/p>\n
“We cannot make people mediate but I will repeat the encouragement and request.<\/p>\n
“Try and resolve this. I think this has got tears written all over it.”<\/p>\n
No date has been fixed for the next hearing.<\/p>\n
Source: bbc.co.uk<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"