U.S. District Judge Michael Mukasey wrote that Anastasia Myskina's rights were not violated when topless photographs were published in a Russian magazine with an article weeks after she won the 2004 French Open.
Myskina was 20 years old when the photographs were taken, and she insisted she did not understand a photo release form with her signature on it and was not fluent in English at the time.
"Absent allegations of fraud, duress or some other wrongdoing, Myskina's claimed misunderstanding of the release's terms does not excuse her from being bound on the contract," the judge said in a ruling signed last week.
Myskina's lawyer, Alexander Berkovich, said Tuesday that the tennis player was considering her options, but he didn't know if he would appeal.
"Obviously, we're disappointed with the decision," he said.
The topless photos were taken after Mark Seliger photographed Myskina for the cover and interior of the Gentleman's Quarterly "Sports" issue in 2002 as part of a pictorial and profile of female tennis players.
Myskina said in court papers that she agreed to be photographed as Lady Godiva, lying nude on the back of a horse, only after she was told she would wear flesh-colored underpants and have long hair taped down to cover her breasts.
She also maintained that she agreed to be photographed only after she was assured that pictures would not be published anywhere besides the GQ issue. Her signature was on a standard release form for models that said she consented to the use of her name and the pictures by the magazine and by "others it may authorize, for editorial purposes."
After the magazine pictures were taken, Myskina was photographed topless in blue jeans. She said in court papers that the photographer had asked if he could take the pictures "for himself" and she said he could do so as long as they were not published.
The judge said in a ruling signed Thursday that such an oral agreement contradicted the plain language of the written agreement and was not admissible in the case.
After Myskina won the French Open, the Russian magazine Medved was granted an interview but not a photo shoot. It published an article which included her thoughts on her romantic life and the professional tour. The article was accompanied by topless pictures of her taken by Seliger during the 2002 session.
In the lawsuit brought Aug. 5, Myskina said the pictures in the Russian magazine were "highly embarrassing and have caused [her] great emotional distress and economic harm and injury to her reputation."
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