Threat of legal action over charity calendar

Wondered if anyone had any advice to offer please. I'm being threatened with legal action over a "Calendar Girls" style horse riding calendar I am creating for charity.

We borrowed a horse from a stables in North Yorkshire to do a shoot for the calendar. The stables (unbeknown to me at the time) gave us one of their customers horses for an hour, after asking the owners permission to do so of course.

Almost twelve months on and the girl who owns the horse has just emailed me telling me not to use any of the photographs and to remove all photographs with her horse on from the website, Facebook, and the calendar, or she will take legal action against me! She's also been posting threatening messages on our facebook pages.

The calendar is being printed right now. All proceeds are going to Multiple Sclerosis and Leukodystrophy research.

What to do? There is no law that I know of saying you can't take photographs of animals, unless they are on the owners own private property, in which case you need the owners permission, but these were taken on land owned by the stables and anyway, she did give her permission in the first place, though it has turned out that she wasn't told of the nature of the shoot.

The photos are at hottotrot.org/jessejames.htm


andy

 

This is somewhat critical issue. It seems to be like that you had no legal contract with this girl. You need to do a legal contract before doing such ad with models. Now, I don't understand why she is asking like this? Is there any unwanted pics on Facebook or on calender? If not then there will be no issues. Try to discuss this issue with her and try to find out any alternative solution on this. Even thou she is not ready for the discussion then it need to fight against legally. But still I think she can not do anything. All the Best.

 

In the interests of a speedy conclusion I've emailed the millionaire property developer now and told him that i will remove all photos of his daughter's horse so as not to cause any deliberate offence, and I'm going up to Thirsk a week on Thursday, weather permitting, to do another shoot.

Anyone have a horse we can borrow? :confused2

 

late reply but... for what it would cost to sue you, and for what she would get over a calendar for a charity; I wonder would anyone even bother representing her in the first place?

I wouldn't take it to heart when people whimsically threaten with legal action like that over daft things, but I would get things in writing always, as words mean nothing in court.

 

We now have a brand spanking new photo of Jesse James for the calendar, and there are some snapshots from the day on Jesses page - hottotrot.org/jessejames.htm

Tulip, the horse in the calendar photo, looks uncannily like Flame, the horse that all the kerfuffle was over!

To anyone who orders a calendar - if you mention 'Jesse James' when you order, we'll include a signed 10" x 8" photo of Jess from the last disputed shoot when we send your calendar, but don't tell anyone, just incase

100% of the price of the calendar goes to The Myelin Project for MS and Leukodystrophy research btw