The New York Supreme Court has given famed photographer Annie Leibovitz three more weeks to answer a lawsuit that claims she put up her intellectual property and real estate assets as collateral for a $24 million loan.A hearing date has been scheduled for this case on October 2, but today is the deadline for Leibovitz to pay back those loans without possibly being declared in default.
Liebovitz’s troubles could scare away other celebrities from using IP as collateral or securitizing IP to raise money. In past years, artists like Michael Jackson, David Bowie, and James Brown have mortgaged intellectual property in tricky financing structures. The Los Angeles Times says that “experts in marketing intellectual property see no close precedent to the Leibovitz deal,” but the impact of seeing a fellow artist lose copyright control could be jarring for many in the artistic community.
In the meantime, Leibovitz has a few weeks to figure out what to do about Art Capital Group, the company that lent her money and is now taking her to court. Possibilities include making a settlement with ACG or declaring bankruptcy. As if these legal troubles weren’t enough for the famed shutterfly, an Italian photographer has just filed a $300,000 lawsuit against Leibovitz for passing off his pictures as her own.
