Jennifer Lopez sued for posting photos of herself

Jennifer Lopez is facing legal trouble for sharing photos of herself on social media without permission.

The singer and actress posted images from her appearance at the Amazon MGM Studios and Vanity Fair party in Los Angeles, held on the eve of this year’s Golden Globe Awards in January.

Photographer Edwin Blanco and the paparazzi agency Backgrid, who claim ownership of the photos, have filed separate lawsuits. They argue that Lopez used the images “to promote Ms Lopez's public appearances, boost user engagement, increase shareability, and lend credibility to her branded content.”

The two photos in question show Lopez in a white dress and a white faux fur coat outside the Chateau Marmont. She posted them on Instagram and X with the caption, “GG Weekend Glamour.” The images were later widely circulated by fan accounts and fashion pages.

Backgrid and Blanco are each seeking damages of up to $150,000 per photo.

The lawsuits allege, “Ms Lopez’s unauthorised use of the Images is commercial in nature, intended for the purpose of self-promotion.” They further claim, “For example, Ms Lopez used the Images to spotlight the designer of her clothing and jewellery, leveraging the publicity from the event to promote her fashion affiliations and brand partnerships.”

In copyright law, the subject of a photo does not own the rights to the image; ownership typically belongs to the photographer or their agency. According to the legal filings, Lopez’s team was contacted after the posts were made and agreed to a payment deal, but the contract has yet to be finalised.

This isn’t Lopez’s first legal run-in over photo usage. She previously faced lawsuits in 2019 and 2020 for similar cases.

With inputs from BBC