LOS ANGELES _ Veteran actress Olivia de Havilland and her legal team are preparing to take her "Feud" battle to a higher court, blasting the "pro-industry" decision to dismiss her false-portrayal lawsuit against FX Networks and Ryan Murphy.
The two-time Oscar winner's case against FX and the creators of the 2017 docudrama "Feud: Bette and Joan" was thrown out by California's 2nd district appellate court on Monday, which ruled that the case impinged on creative expression and First Amendment rights.
The 101-year-old actress' legal counsel, Suzelle Smith of Howarth & Smith, blasted the three-judge panel's 36-page opinion as "entirely in favor of FX and the industry." She also singled out panel Judge Anne Egerton's ties to the entertainment industry and former employment by Munger Tolles & Olson, the firm representing FX in the case, suggesting it was related to the "disappointing" decision.
"The Opinion is breathtaking in its failure to follow established precedent from both the Court of Appeal and the Supreme Court," Smith said in a statement to the Los Angeles Times on Monday. "It ignores the rule of law that the Justices cannot weigh the evidence and must credit all plaintiff's evidence."
De Havilland's attorney asserted that the court of appeal took upon itself "the role of both Judge and jury," tasks usually reserved for the trial court, and denied de Havilland her "constitutional rights to have a jury decide her claims to protect the property rights in her name or to defend her reputation against knowing falsehoods."
"This is an entirely pro-industry decision, and was clearly written before the hearing less than a week ago," Smith said.
"Miss de Havilland, her many fans all over the world, and actors in similar situations are rightly disappointed in this Opinion," she continued. "The Opinion does not properly balance the First Amendment with other important rights. This case appears to be destined for a higher court, and we will be preparing the appropriate petition for such review."
The opinion reversed a Superior Court judge's September decision to proceed with the case. It also stated that the "Gone With the Wind" star's portrayal in the eight-episode series "is not highly offensive to a reasonable person as a matter of law."
FX, Murphy and the Motion Picture Association of America celebrated the Monday decision as a major legal victory for filmmakers and creators of all kinds.
