Photographer Sues Virgin Over Photo of Richard Branson’s Late Mother
A photographer is embroiled in a legal fight with Richard Branson’s company Virgin over a photo of the British entrepreneur and his late mother Eve.
Jen Magnuson, an independent freelancer based in Colorado, was hired for an event hosted by the International Centre for Missing and Exploited Children (IMEC) in April 2014 attended by Branson and his mother. She was hired to capture photos for “printed brochures and on the IMEC’s website,” according to court documents.
Magnuson captured a shot of Branson and his mom embracing. Later, a Branson intermediary reached out to ask if they could publish the photo on “Richard’s Blog.” Magnuson says she agreed but gave a nonexclusive license that didn’t allow for usage outside of that single blog post and on the proviso of a credit.
Magnuson says she gave Branson a limited license but, crucially, did not give Virgin any kind of license. The photo is registered with the U.S. Copyright Office.
The Alleged Infringement
Seven years after the event when Branson’s mother died, Virgin “publicly displayed the photograph in new posts on its “commercial” website and Instagram account without credit.” Magnuson says she wasn’t contacted for permission or authorization and the Virgin website displayed “Virgin.com” as a credit beneath her picture.
Magnuson sent a cease-and-desist letter to Virgin in 2022, demanding the infringement be taken down and asked for compensation.
“We tried to work toward a settlement and we were unable to do so,” Magnuson’s lawyer Scott Burroughs from Doniger / Burroughs tells PetaPixel. “The demand we made was quite modest to try to bring this too to a resolution, but their position was, we’re not going to pay the artist anything.”
Virgin calls its use of Magnuson’s photo in court documents “fair use” and that she “granted an unrestricted license to use the photograph.”
The lawsuit, filed last summer, is currently awaiting a summary judgment motion with a trial still a possibility.
“It appears to me that [Virgin] is engaged in this very aggressive litigation approach and attempt to bully and intimidate the artist,” adds Burroughs.
“And in claiming that they’re going to be seeking hundreds of thousand dollars in damages from her, it seems to underscore that they’re less interested in the merits of the case and more interested in trying to bully an independent artist.”
Image credits: Photographs by Jen Magnuson.
