A Los Angeles photographer’s $5 million lawsuit against Rod Stewart and Caesars Palace for the alleged use of one of her shots in the singer’s stage show will be put on hold during the casino entertainment company’s bankruptcy case, a judge ordered Wednesday.
In her lawsuit for copyright infringement, filed last year in Los Angeles federal court, Bonnie Schiffman claims Stewart illegally used a 1981 photo she took of the back of his head and shoulders as part of the scenery at a series of shows in Las Vegas.
Schiffman said the Stewart photo was properly used on the singer’s 1989 album, “Storyteller,” but she did not license its use for the Las Vegas shows.
The suit seeks a total of $5 million in compensatory and punitive damages.
Caesars Entertainment Corp. — owner of Caesars Palace — filed for bankruptcy protection this month.
U.S. District Judge Andre Birotte Jr. ordered a status report every 120 days updating the court of the status of the Chapter 11 case.
