Chalk up one for Madonna. She has successfully fought back again the British tabloid the Mail for publishing 11 photos taken at her wedding to Guy Ritchie on December 22, 2000. The leaked photos were stolen from her Los Angeles home and ended up as front page news in October 2008.
The Scottish nuptial event was photographed by Jean-Baptiste Mondino, who presented an album of wedding photographs to Madonna as a keepsake gift. According to Madonna’s lawyer, Matthew Nicklin, Beverly Hills interior designer Robert Joseph Wilber “surreptitiously gained access to the photo album and copied at least 26 photos.”
On October 15, 2008, the photos were sold to the Mail by a woman who identified herself as Bonnie Robinson of Los Angeles. She was reportedly paid $7,500 for the stolen pics.
The Mail published eleven of the photos over the front page and a double-page inside spread on Sunday October 19. Madonna’s lawyer, Nicklin says of the leaked pics, “she was ambushed”.
The lawsuit accused the tabloid of breaching her privacy and copyright by publishing photos of her 2000 wedding. She is seeking $7.5 million. Judge David Eady entered a judgment in her favor. Compensation will be determined in January 2009.
Ironically, the couple was granted a divorce decree on November 21, to be final in January 2009. Under the circumstances, does Guy split the lawsuit award? We’re just asking….
More photos below.