Fifty Shades of Grey original publisher ordered to set aside millions over royalties spat
The Writers Coffee Shop sold the rights to the novels to Random House
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.One of the original publishers of the Fifty Shades series, who was defrauded by her former business partne,r could receive millions following a ruling in the US.
State District Judge Susan McCoy determined that Amanda Hayward must set aside as much as £6.9m ($10.7m) for former business partner Jennifer Pedroza.
In court documents, Ms Pedroza claims her ex-colleague used “chicanery” to cheat her out of her rightful share when their publisher The Writers Coffee Shop sold EL James’ trilogy.
The novels, which became a publishing sensation and spawned a film of the same name, were sold to Random House for $40 million.
Ms Pedroza’s lawyers claim their client is entitled to approximately $10.7 million, as per her 25 per cent stake in the publisher.
Earlier this year a jury ruled in favour of Ms Pedroza’s claim of fraud, finding that Ms Hayward had tricked her partner into signing a restricting agreement that effectively cut her out of subsequent royalties.
Robert Kantar, Ms Hayward’s lawyer, said his client plans to appeal. The exact settlement will be worked out once both side reach an agreement, Judge McCoy said.
Additional reporting by Associated Press
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments