MEGS’ PHOTO FINI$H
‘Left us pauperazzi’
A major paparazzi shop claims it was forced to file for bankruptcy because of skyrocketing costs in its legal battle against Meghan Markle.
Splash News & Picture Agency, which is being sued by Markle (inset) in a privacy lawsuit over photos taken during a “private family outing” in Canada, said it defaulted on a loan now worth nearly $1 million and accordingly was forced to file for Chapter 11 in a Nevada bankruptcy court.
Shot in January 2020, the photos taken with a long lens showed Markle on Vancouver Island walking her two dogs with her baby son, Archie, in a sling. At the time, Markle and Prince Harry had briefly settled in Canada after announcing plans to step back from their royal duties.
In December, the BBC and other press outlets reported a settlement, with a Splash rep saying at the time that the agency “will not take unauthorized photographs of the family of the Duke and Duchess of Sussex.”
Nevertheless, the case is not fully resolved, Splash said in a Wednesday statement. The agency — which snaps pics of celebs from Kim Kardashian and Taylor Swift to Nick Jonas and Lizzo — said it believes Markle brought the lawsuit on behalf of Archie in a move “designed to destroy the business” of the company.
“Having tried unsuccessfully to reach a settlement with the Duchess, it is the view of the directors that this places an unacceptable risk to the survival of the business and have regrettably taken the business into Chapter 11 to protect our employees,” Splash said. “We will continue to trade as normal and no jobs will be affected by this announcement.”
Splash has also said it is struggling due to the pandemic, with fewer celeb images to sell and fewer media outlets buying, given tight budgets. Splash is also embroiled in a legal battle with a former employee.
In addition, revenues from copyright infringements, over $118,000 in 2020 fell to $21,000 last year, according to bankruptcy filings.
A rep for Markle did not respond to requests seeking comment. Splash is considered a pioneer in actions against famous people for posting copyrighted images of themselves, and it has faced off against the likes of Jennifer Lopez, Jessica Simpson, Liam Hemsworth and Nicki Minaj.
“The [Markle] case involves free-speech-related issues under United Kingdom law and unfortunately has proven to be too unbearably expensive for Splash to continue its defense,” Splash president Emma Curzon said in a bankruptcy document.
She said if Splash lost it also faced the risk of a “large legal-fee award.”
So, “notwithstanding the merits of the case, the company has sought to settle this matter but has been unable to agree [on] a financial settlement within its resources,” Curzon wrote.