Is it too late now to say sorry? Singer and songwriter Justin Bieber is being sued over posting a photo…of himself. That’s right, photographer Robert Barbera has filed a lawsuit against the “Love Yourself” singer for copyright infringement over a picture Bieber posted on Instagram. In the court documents, obtained by E! News, Barbera says that this action arises due to Bieber’s “unauthorized reproduction and public display” of the copyrighted photograph, which is owned and registered by Barbera.
“Barbera is the author of the Photograph and has at all times been the sole owner of all right, title and interest in and to the Photograph, including the copyright thereto,” the documents state.
The photo in question is one that Justin Bieber posted to his Instagram on March 13, 2019 showing him in a car with his pal, Rich Wilkerson.
“Me and my guy,” the 25-year-old star captioned the photo, which is still up on the social media platform.
The photo in question is one that Justin Bieber posted to his Instagram on March 13, 2019 showing him in a car with his pal, Rich Wilkerson
According to the court documents, Bieber “did not license the Photograph” from Barbera for his Instagram page, nor did he have Barbera’s “permission or consent to publish” the photo on Instagram.
This lawsuit comes just over a week after Jennifer Lopez was sued for copyright infringement over a photo she posted to her Instagram Story in 2017. Splash News and Picture Agency filed the lawsuit against Lopez, seeking $150,000 over a picture she posted of her and Alex Rodriguez.
Back in September, Gigi Hadid was sued for posting a photo of her ex, Zayn Malik, on her Instagram Story.
E! News has reached out to Bieber’s team for comment.