NEW YORK CITY, NEW YORK: Model Paulina Porizkova recently disclosed that she found herself facing a lawsuit after committing what she described as an 'expensive mistake' on Instagram. This revelation has left her feeling apprehensive, limiting her posts to self-portraits exclusively.
The 58-year-old model took to the social media platform earlier this month, sharing a candid makeup-free image of herself. In the photo, she posed donning a floral robe, her eyes wide, and her hand resting beneath her chin.
Why was Porizkova sued?
Porizkova elaborated on her legal predicament, recounting an incident from the previous year. She had shared a photo by a photographer on Instagram, intending to highlight the distressing events unfolding in Ukraine.
The image aimed to serve as an illustrative accompaniment to her post about the harrowing situation. However, things went south when the original photographer issued a lawsiuit for copywrite infringement.
The caption on her recent post read, “One reason I’ve been posting a lot of self-generated content lately is because I’m terrified. Of what, you may wonder? Of getting sued. Again”.
"Six months later, I was slapped with a lawsuit by a law firm on the behalf of one photographer. I had used his photo without his approval or without paying for usage,' she said.
"Until that point, I didn’t even realize this was a thing — reposting photos from the internet being illegal."
Porizkova's legal woes led to an out-of-court settlement
Porizkova candidly acknowledged that her experience as a model accustomed her to the frequent sharing of her photos without obtaining permission, leading her to overlook the potential legal consequences.
She elaborated on her perspective, explaining, "My images are used all the time, and unless someone is trying to sell something with the images, I thought this was fine. It turns out it’s not".
Continuing, she lamented, "There are law firms that do nothing but scour social media for dummies like myself who have enough followers to pay up."
Porizkova revealed that the situation ultimately led to an out-of-court settlement, as she acknowledged that the opposing party was indeed correct in their claim, despite her initial well-intentioned motives when she shared the image.
Reflecting on the matter, she admitted, "I did use an unauthorized photo — even if it was carrying on the message I thought the photographer was trying to make — that war is evil. And boy, did that turn out to be an expensive mistake!"
She warned concerning the self-centered nature of her posts, acknowledging, "So, if you find my thread unbearable in its vanity and narcissism already, it’s not gonna get better. You may want to unfollow now before I annoy you further."
