Legal Row halts Harry Potter lexicon

10-11-2007 12:48

The publisher at the centre of a legal row over a Harry Potter Encyclopaedia has been forced to delay the release of the manual after being sued by author JK Rowling.Publisher Roger Rapoport said the book will not be published until a judge rules on whether it violates Rowling's intellectual property rights.A judge in New York has issued an order barring completion, distribution, marketing or advance sales of the book until further notice. Written by Steve Vander Ark, it was scheduled for release on 28 November.Entitled Harry Potter Lexicon, it is based on material from an internet fan site of the same name.Mr Rapoport, whose company is based in Michigan, said he had given a copy of the Lexicon to Warner Bros lawyers - who hold the copyright to the Harry Potter books - in the hope that they would read it and decide that it did not violate copyright.Rowling's lawsuit, filed on 31 October, sought an injunction blocking publication of the book on the grounds that it would borrow too heavily from her work and spoil plans to eventually publish her own encyclopaedia of Harry Potter's world.