Appeal forthcoming in Lexicon case
The Detroit Free Press is reporting this morning that a notice of appeal will be filed by attorneys on behalf of Roger Rapoport and Steve Vander Ark in an attempt at "preserving the men's right to continue the legal battle for their Harry Potter book."As reported last week, Judge Patterson ruled in favor of J.K. Rowling and Warner Brothers stating that The Lexicon takes too much from Rowling's work. Rapoport and Vander Ark are looking into editing the current edition of the book.
No statement has been issued by either J.K. Rowling or Warner Brothers at this time.
Posted by Micah on Sep 15th |
74 Comments


Visitor Comments















FIRST!
Vander Ark should just GIVE UP, he's not gonna win!
Hmmm, the Lexicon website no longer seems to be working. If he has closed the site out of spite, then I have no sympathy for him. He should have contacted JKR before putting the website into book form and offered to work with her on HER encyclopedia.
Wheres MUGGLECAST?
Er... seriously, he's starting to look like Hillary Clinton. It's time to realize you didn't win!
By the time the appeals process is finished and everything is over and done with, any money he would make from this lexicon will have been used up in legal fees. He should just quit now and cut his losses. He can still edit the book and try again, but don't appeal this.
Crookshanks800, apparently the site is "undergoing technical difficulties". I'm sure the Lexicon will be back soon, but I must say that it has been behind on updating a lot of pages... I mean, it's been over a year since Deathly Hallows came out, for goodness sake. As to this news post, I wish RDR and Steve would quit wasting everyone's time. If J. K. Rowling ever told me to stop doing something, I most certainly wouldn't need telling twice!
Dude. She said "NO". He should just give it a rest and move on to his next book that is supposedly going to be published next month. I wonder if he realizes how much bad press he's creating around his name... I know I won't be buying his next book, or his encyclopedia either. I definitely want the encyclopedia by JKR because, you know, she was the one who created the series and knows much more about her characters than anyone else could possibly imagine.
I don't understand what he expects to gain from this. The judge ruled in Jo's favor, and obviously she doesn't want him to publish the book, so I'm struggling to see what hope he has of an appeal.
Why are they dragging this out? Honestly.
i mean come on!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! THEY JUST DON'T LEARN DO THEY? I MEAN ALL THE POSSIBLE ARGUMENTS AND COUNTER ARGUMENTS THAT COULD HAVE BEEN GIVEN ARE ALREADY GIVEN!!! WHAT NEW THING IS GONNA BE DISCUSSED IN THIS? HOW CAN THE ARGUMENTS CHANGE....I THINK THEY'RE WASTING THEIR MONEY AND JKR'S TIME
As soon as he signed that contract, Steve is their dog on a leash. They probably gave him a decently sized advance too. Although I'm not sure I'd say he's completely innocent, he might just be getting jerked around by RDR.
Warner Bros has far more money and better lawyers and they have the RIGHT on their side. RDR needs to back off before they get blacklisted in the publishing industry.
WAIT. WHAT? There's going to be a lot of editing if the appeal is granted and SVA gets a chance to publish that book. He should give it up, accept defeat, and continue working on the travel guide! P.S. Crookshanks800: I just tried the site; it's working okay! ... http:// hplex. org/ ... (remove spaces, obviously); try it now!
UGH!! Laaaaame! Let it go, dudes. It's over. Jo wins, as she should. RDR needs to learn to cut their losses and not make themselves look like idiots and NOT get more bad publicity, because they're GOING to lose again. All their doing is making people resentful toward them, because let's face it, most people are going to side with Jo.
Ima boycott.
EFF This guy!!! Write your own god-damned books!
Really? I mean, come on! Standing up against JKR the first time wasn't enough? He shouldn't appeal this court verdict. Maybe if he edits the book and actually lets WB and JKR see the book when they request it, he'll not have the same problems.
Wow, this is ridiculous. Most of us were still rooting for him when it was revealed that he was writing a travel guide instead, but if he continues to beat a dead horse like this, everyone's going to lose interest in everything he does. Although this is probably largely RDR's fault, any self-respecting publishing company would know better than to keep fighting on the wrong side of a publishing war. Steve and RDR, move on with your lives!
I honestly don't see how they could edit this book without still totally ripping her off. He should just give up and get a life! As if they haven't wasted enough money and time fighting JK, when it was pretty obvious they weren't going to win anyway!
R U SRS?! Come on, lawyers! Give up already! Just when I was starting to become less irritated with SvdA...
ew...NO.
Steve and RDA has every right to appeal complete travesty. If WB and JKR lost they would also have appealed. It is all part of the legal process. You never give up until you fire everything you have.
You'd think if you were a fan of a book, so much to the point that you wanted to write your own book ABOUT THAT BOOK, that when the author asked you not to, you'd respect that and leave it alone. How stupid is this guy?
I commend them for trying, I still think JKR and WB are being selfish bullys...but they have no chance. It's a squirrel fighting a grizzly bear.
"For their harry Potter book"? thier? honeslty, i can tell you that its not steve! HIS PRODUCTION COMPANY IS PUTTING FIRE UNDER HIM! THEY1 KNOW THW BOOK is GENERATING BUZZ, AND IF THEY SUCCED THEYLL END UP GETTING MONEY!!!!!i hope the judge realizes this..................... ..................
What sort of "fan" disobeys JKR's wishes? How exactly is JKR a bully? They're her characters! Stupid, stupid, stupid.
Give it a rest....this is so stupid. It's not their Harry Potter book. Did they create the characters, the plot, did they put in the hard work in the hours to make these books. I think not...so give it a rest. It's J.K Rowling's story...her life. I can't figure out where people get off as J.K Rowling is a bully...it's her well earned time that she should pretty much own her characters her plot everything that deals with Harry Potter.
oh just get over it!
THREE FACTS 1. STEVE CONTACTED JKR, BUT JKR GAVE HIM THE COLD SHOULDER. 2. STEVE WAS ASSURED BY RDR THAT HIS BOOK WAS LEGAL WHEN HE EXPRESSED DOUBTS. 3. COMPANION BOOKS TO NARNIA, LORD OF THE RINGS, ETC. ETC. EXIST TO PROVIDE READERS WITH AN ENCYCLOPEDIA OF INFORMATION. I used to idolize JKR and WB, and while I commend her efforts in charity, SHE, in fact, caused the situation by refusing to communicate with Steve. Steve offered to provide the information for JKR's encyclopedia, but JKR refused. The recent cases (WB & JKR suing everyone/thing who bears any resemblance to Harry Potter) has made me lose a lot of respect for them. Good job WB & JKR for creating a situation that could have easily been avoided and exhibiting the most hypocrisy I have ever seen!
@ bubblettes: THREE FACTS 1. STEVE CONTACTED JKRs LITERARY AGENTS AND BEGGED FOR A JOB AND WAS POLITELY TURNED DOWN; 2. RDR DID ASSURE STEVE THE BOOK WAS LEGAL AND EVEN WENT SO FAR AS TO INDEMNIFY STEVE FROM LAWSUITS BROUGHT AGAINST HIM BY JKROWLING~RDR CLAIMS TO HAVE CONTACTED AN INTELLECTUAL PROPERTIES ATTORNEY TO ENSURE THIS BOOK WAS LEGAL, YET PROVIDED ZERO PROOF IN COURT AS TO WHO EXACTLY HE'D CONTACTED; 3. YES, INDEED, MANY REFERENCE WORKS BASED UPON POPULAR NOVELS EXIST, HOWEVER, THOSE THAT DO EXIST DON'T COPY 91% OF SOMEONE ELSE'S WORK VERBATIM.
why is he doing this? isn't he aware that his pushing Jo like this can end up drasticaly hurting the fans? if she decides to not write her encyclopedia because someone decides to let him write his, i sincerely hope that we, as harry potter fans, can unite to egg his house and demand that he apologize to Jo and every harry potter fan in existance.
If they want to fight Jo like this, if they don't care that she does not want them to publish a book that is about HER own books, then why have they written it in the first place? If they want to support Harry Potter, they would respect Jo. I think that if any other HP fan was in that situation, they would fall on their knees and beg for forgiveness for Jo, not try and fight her.
Quit while your still ahead!
This is too much. Give it up or make the changes...
That is soooo STUPID!!! Just GIVE UP already, and leave Jo alone! You already lost so dumb! What is he expecting to gain from this??
I am sorry but what a pair of tools. Give up, get over yourself and move on. That sounds very spiteful and childish, but from what I read of the Court Transcripts the Judge has perfect grounds for making his decision.
Come on guys, give it up. Well, as long as they don't reach "Laura Mallory spaz" levels, I'll try not to complain.
Oh god. Here we go again. Seriously, just give up. You're not going to win. Move on and write a book that doesn't violate copyright infringement.
bloody hell
So, because JKR said that he should stop, he should stop? Right. I wanna read the book, it seems cool. Oh, anddddd, you guys are ignorant farts. ID I look I'd name calling too!
Steve! Don't you realize how upset you're making Jo? Remember almost a year ago...? If this interferes with Jo's writing of fthe encyclopedia, I'm not going to be happy. =[
AnnaSmee, we're being ignorant? For not wanting to waste our money on a book that no hard work, imagination, or care was put into? A book that only organizes everything we already know and that we can find on the internet for free? He took another person's sweat, blood, and tears, added not thought of his own, and intended to make a nice little profit off of it. I say "he" from lack of better word. I really don't blame Steve. It was a bad, bad mistake and for all we know, he could be as against this now as we are. But thanks to those darn contracts, he has to consent to what ever RDR says and have his name dragged up on what they do. I don't blame Steve.
Im teeling you guys if they succed then they hope to get money of the conrevesy from the book not the quality has. they know peple want to see what the fuss wqas about, they are using "rights" as an excuse to hopefully get money.............
Im teeling you guys if they succed then they hope to get money of the conrevesy from the book not the quality has. they know peple want to see what the fuss wqas about, they are using "rights" as an excuse to hopefully get money.............
Im teeling you guys if they succed then they hope to get money of the conrevesy from the book not the quality has. they know peple want to see what the fuss wqas about, they are using "rights" as an excuse to hopefully get money.............
Im teeling you guys if they succed then they hope to get money of the conrevesy from the book not the quality has. they know peple want to see what the fuss wqas about, they are using "rights" as an excuse to hopefully get money.............
AnnaSnee, if you wanna read the book, why haven't you done it yet? It's in the court documents at justia.com, search Lexicon, select WB vs RDR, you'll find it in filing 39, attachments 1-5. I want drop $25 for that drivel!
oh...over posting again
GOOD, I hope they win.
Back to Top