Copyright Law

'Harry Potter' Author Wins Case Over Fan's Harry Potter Encyclopedia

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The author of the best-selling Harry Potter books has won her lawsuit over a fan’s effort to publish a Harry Potter encyclopedia.

Author J.K. Rowling has persuaded a federal judge in the Southern District of New York that Steven Vander Ark’s Harry Potter Lexicon would cause her irreparable harm, reports the Associated Press.

“Many books have been published which offer original insights into the world of Harry Potter,” Rowling said in a written statement. “The Lexicon just is not one of them.”

There’s no word about whether the lawsuit will affect the popular website by the same name, which, according to the site, is “undergoing technical difficulty.”

Additional coverage:

City Room (New York Times): “‘Harry Potter’ Author Wins Copyright Ruling”

ABAJournal.com: “J.K. Rowling: Harry Potter is My World, Not Fan’s”

Updated at 3:23 p.m. to include J.K. Rowling’s statement and at 4:46 p.m. to include New York Times blog coverage.

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