Garcelle Beauvais, Real Housewives of Beverly Hills star, allegedly has a federal lawsuit against her for a post she made on social media. RadarOnline obtained court documents on May 30 describing Beauvais being sued by a photographer for copyright issues.

Photographer John Carta told the court that he chose to take photos of Beauvais while she was in New York back in May of last year. She reportedly posted the images that he took in a collage on May 17. The suit read, “Without permission or authorization from Plaintiff, [Garcelle] volitionally copied and/or displayed [John’s] copyright protected Photographs on the Account,” the suit read.

“Garcelle Beauvais standing with her hand out in the streets of NYC carrying a handbag while wearing denim shorts and a black satin-like blouse,” Carta said of the photos. He continued to say that Beauvais used the photos without paying him for them or asking permission. She allegedly posted them to Facebook before Carta got the chance to sell the images like he originally planned. Not only did she post them for free on her Facebook account, but he also accused her of boosting her brand with his work and making money from it. 

John said his plans to sell the images were ruined when Garcelle posted his work for free on her account. He accused her of using the photos to advance her brand and reputation. The suit read, “The Account is monetized in that it contains endorsements and promotes [Garcelle’s] celebrity profile and upon information and belief, [Garcelle] profits from these activities.”

“[Garcelle], without permission or authorization from [John], actively copied and/or displayed [John’s] photographs on the Account and engaged in this misconduct knowingly and in violation of the United States copyright laws.” 

Carta further attested to his efforts to take the pictures for Beauvais. He claimed creative ownership over the “subject matter, timing, lighting, angle, perspective, depth, lens and camera equipment used to capture the image.” 

Carta claimed that Beauvais knew she was violating copyright law when she posted the photos to social media and made money from it by getting more traffic on her page. Carta filed the lawsuit for damages and a prohibitive order for the RHOBH star to never use his work without giving him financial compensation again.