The Cairo Economic Court decided to postpone the consideration of the lawsuit filed by artist Haifa Wehbe against a nutrition and slimming doctor, accusing him of exploiting her videos and pictures to promote his clinic without obtaining her consent, to a session on September 21, pending the submission of a report from the appointed intellectual property expert in the case.
The postponement decision came after the intellectual property expert finished listening to the pleadings and defenses of both parties in the dispute, who is currently working on preparing his technical report, which is expected to be one of the main evidence the court will rely on when adjudicating the case.
According to attorney Sherif Hafiz, representing Haifa Wehbe, his client filed the lawsuit demanding civil compensation of 5 million Egyptian pounds, based on the exploitation of her name, image, and artistic performance in advertising for the doctor's clinic through social media, without obtaining her permission or legal authorization.
He indicated that Haifa visited the medical center in April 2023 to obtain only a medical consultation, and did not visit the clinic thereafter, as she changed doctors later and dealt with another doctor.
He explained that during that visit, two video clips were filmed inside the clinic to support the center at that time, but the relationship between the two parties ended after the visit, and no agreement was signed allowing for the reuse or publication of these videos in the future.
He added that his client was surprised by the doctor redistributing the two videos at intervals through the platforms "Facebook", "Instagram", and "TikTok", exploiting her appearance in the commercial promotion for his clinic, without obtaining her consent or referring to her.
He emphasized that the lawsuit is based on the provisions of the Intellectual Property Rights Protection Law and the articles that grant performance artists a exclusive right to license the exploitation of their artistic performance or to prohibit it, especially via the internet and social media.
He demanded that the defendant be obligated to pay civil compensation of 5 million Egyptian pounds, in addition to legal interest, confirming that the aim of the lawsuit is to protect artists' rights and deter any unlawful exploitation of their names, images, or artistic performances in advertisements and commercial promotions without prior consent.