NEW YORK, Dec. 19 A New York screenwriter has been given a chance to resubmit his lawsuit, which claims the film rights to The Bourne Identity were embezzled from him. Manhattan Supreme Court Justice Bernard Fried has given Anthony Lazzarino to argue that he had written a screenplay for the Robert Ludlum novel in the 1970s, the New York Daily News reported Wednesday.
They embezzled me. They took my rights and converted them as though they were Ludlum's rights, said the 69-year-old, who was paid $175,000 in 1981 by Orion Pictures. My argument is based on the original contract and what it says. The other side has fabricated documents that were never a part of the original deal.The defendants in the claim said that the statute of limitations has expired an Lazzarino's argument is not valid.
We are arguing Lazzarino has no rights because the events he said took place never happened, defense lawyer Marshall Beil told the Daily News. The defendant in the case is Henry Morrison, Ludlum's agent, since Ludlum died in 2001. Lazzarino is also suing Universal Pictures.
Copyright 2006 by UPI
