Former Desperate Housewives star Nicollette Sheridan continues to have bad luck in court.
On Monday, the judge overseeing her lawsuit against ABC and executive producer Marc Cherry ruled that if Sheridan wins an upcoming jury trial, the axed actress will be limited to recovering only lost wages from season six of the show instead of that season plus two more.
Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Elizabeth Allen White urged the parties to come to some sort of settlement, according to the AP.
“You’re going to spend a lot of money on this case,” White told the attorneys on both sides.
Sheridan originally sued for $20 million, contending that she was slapped in the face by Cherry and then written off the show. The actress then dropped claims of emotional abuse and later, the judge tossed Sheridan’s claims of sexual harassment and assault.
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What was left was mostly Sheridan’s allegations that she had been wrongfully terminated.
Her lawyers argued that she should be entitled to money for the show’s full run as she had options to return before her firing, but Judge White made a determination that Sheridan’s place on the show beyond the sixth season was at the producer’s discretion. As a result, her damages are limited to that one missed season on the show, which amounts to about $980,000.
The jury trial is scheduled for October. Meanwhile, the show is shooting its eighth and last season, and despite Cherry saying recently that original castmembers will be back for the finale, Sheridan says she won’t return.
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