Magazine says sorry to Britney

Britney Spears: won an apology
11 April 2012
The Weekender

Sign up to our free weekly newsletter for exclusive competitions, offers and theatre ticket deals

I would like to be emailed about offers, event and updates from Evening Standard. Read our privacy notice.

Britney Spears has won an apology from a publication which claimed her marriage is over

The National Enquirer claimed in its British and Irish editions last month that the pop star was set to divorce husband Kevin Federline.

A retraction and apology was printed in both editions today.

"We now accept that their marriage is not over and they are not getting divorced.

"These allegations are untrue and we now accept Britney's position that the statements are without foundation. We apologise for any distress caused," it read.

The stories were headlined: "Britney marriage is over!" and "Britney and Kevin: And now their divorce!"

Spears did not ask for damages.

The 24-year-old star married aspiring rapper Federline in September 2004.
They have a son, 10-month-old Sean Preston, and Spears is pregnant with their second child.

Spears opted to pursue the British and Irish editions of the Florida-based National Enquirer because the libel laws in these countries make it easier and quicker to sue - a trend dubbed "libel tourism".

The singer was represented by solicitor Paul Tweed of Johnsons Solicitors in Belfast.

"The couple are very satisfied with the Enquirer's prompt and good-faith response," he said.

Spears wants to put an end to the speculation about her marriage, Mr Tweed said.

"She made it clear from the outset that she wanted this dealt with right away.

"These falsehoods have been written and she wants to try to stop the rot," he added.

"The problem in America is that there is a very strict defamation law. If you are a public figure you have to show malice - so effectively celebrities can't sue for liable except in extreme cases.

"We have been able to hit them here because the situation is more favourable.

Its so erroneous and so difficult to get an action off the ground in the US that more and more Americans are suing here."

Spears is pursuing several other British publications which printed similar stories.

Create a FREE account to continue reading

eros

Registration is a free and easy way to support our journalism.

Join our community where you can: comment on stories; sign up to newsletters; enter competitions and access content on our app.

Your email address

Must be at least 6 characters, include an upper and lower case character and a number

You must be at least 18 years old to create an account

* Required fields

Already have an account? SIGN IN

By clicking Create Account you confirm that your data has been entered correctly and you have read and agree to our Terms of use , Cookie policy and Privacy policy .

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged in