Bella Hadid Settles Federal Lawsuit Brought After Being Dragged to Court Over Instagram Post
Apr. 18 2024, Published 5:30 a.m. ET
Bella Hadid agreed to settle the federal lawsuit demanding damages from the model for alleged copyright infringement.
According to court documents obtained by RadarOnline.com, the NY-based company Chosen Figure LLC, who represent professional photographers, informed the court a settlement was reached with Bella.
“We write to inform the Court that the parties have settled principle pending their negotiation of a final settlement agreement,” a lawyer for the company wrote.
The court dismissed the case. However, it noted Chosen Figure had 30 days to re-open the case if talks fell apart.
As we first reported, Chosen Figure claimed one of their photographers took a photo of Bella outside her apartment on August 12, 2020. The company said a copyright was obtained for the image.
The company said Bella took the photo and posted it on her Instagram without paying a license fee or asking for permission.
Chosen Figure argued Bella received a direct “financial benefit” from publishing the image on her social media. In addition, the company said it ruined their chances of licensing the image and making money.
“[Chosen Figure] has not licensed [Hadid] the right to use the Photograph in any manner, nor has [Chosen Figure] assigned any of its exclusive rights in the copyrights to [Bella],” the suit read.
The suit demanded unspecified damages.
For weeks, Chosen Figure struggled to find Bella to serve her with the legal paperwork.
It added, "Despite repeated efforts to serve and/or contact Ms. Hadid at multiple residential addresses in both New York and California, all attempts thus far have been unsuccessful, either because she is no longer residing at the address provided, or because the process server was unable to gain entry to the premises where she reportedly resides."
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The company pleaded for additional time to locate Bella.
A couple of weeks before Bella was hit, her sister Gigi was sued by a photographer named Ulices for posting photos he took on Instagram.
