Justice Awogboro Abimbola Olawunmi of the Federal High Court in Lagos has imposed a fine of N5.5 million on The Sun Publishing Limited for unauthorized usage of Temitope Akinyemi's photograph.
The court's decision came in response to a lawsuit filed in 2022 by Akinyemi, seeking N750 million in damages for copyright infringement against The Sun Publishing Limited.
In her legal claim, Akinyemi alleged that The Sun Publishing Limited had unlawfully featured her photograph on Page 3 Cover Girl of its newspaper - The Sun - on May 25, 2016, without obtaining her consent and approval.
Represented by her counsel, R. A. Igelige Esq. of Felix, Igelige & Associates, Akinyemi, among other reliefs, asked the court to award “against the defendant (The Sun) and in favour of the plaintiff (Akinyemi) the sum of N300,000,000 (Three Hundred Million Naira) as general damages; N200,000,000 (Two Hundred Million Naira) as special damages for the derogatory and violation of her moral right in the use of her photograph; and N25,000,000 (Twenty-five Million Naira) as aggravated and punitive damages for the unlawful and flagrant infringement of the plaintiff’s copyright having caused the plaintiff to suffer insults, odium, ridicule and a lowering of her esteem in the eyes of the public, as well as for the emotional distress and trauma that the unlawful, derogatory use of the said photograph inflicted on her.”
Also, Akinyemi asked for a declaration that “copyright subsists in the plaintiff’s photograph published by the Defendant on page 3 of The Daily Sun newspaper of 25/5/2016, Volume 12, number 3413, bearing the name Sadiyat with the telephone number 09057312447 under the heading SUNGIRL as the said photograph was taken, made and/or produced by the Plaintiff”.
She also asked for a “declaration that the publication of the said photograph in the specified edition or issue of The Daily Sun newspaper of 25/5/2016 without the consent or authorization of the Plaintiff constitutes an infringement of the copyright of the Plaintiff in the said photograph.
“A declaration that the unauthorized use of the plaintiff`s photograph by the defendant for its commercial benefit without the consent or permission of the plaintiff with a false name and wrong GSM number is wrongful and amounts to derogatory use and violation of the plaintiff’s moral right in the said photograph and also libellous and injurious to her person.
“An order of injunction by this Honourable Court restraining the defendant, its agents, servants, privies, successors-in-title and assigns from further publishing, reproducing, selling, or in any other way using or offering for a fee to its customers the copyrighted photograph of the plaintiff or any copy of it, without first reaching a contractual agreement with the plaintiff.
“An order of this Honourable Court directing the defendant, its agents, servants, privies, successors-in-title and assigns to deliver to the plaintiff the copy or copies of the said photograph in the defendant’s possession, and to remove or delete it from the website hosting the online or Internet version of The Daily Sun newspaper, and any other order or orders as this Honourable Court may deem fit to make under the circumstances of this case.”
In its decision, the court ruled in favour of the complainant, hence, the sum of N5.5 million was awarded against The Sun Publishing Limited for copyright infringement.
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