A COURT IN Dublin has heard how the image of a mermaid led to trouble between two previously good neighbours.
When Henry Barnwell, a keen sailor, wanted a mermaid painted on the wind vane of his yacht, his neighbour, artist Deirdre Lyons Doyle, was able to help him.
Ms Lyons Doyle, out of goodwill for her neighbour, agreed to paint the wooden wind vane, Ciarán Lewis, barrister for Mr Barnwell, told Judge Jacqueline Linnane. They were on such good terms, he said, that no money had passed hands.
Then Mr Barnwell, Silchester Park, Glenageary, Co Dublin, used the painting in part illustration for the cover of his book Distant Shoreswhich was published in 2004, Daniel Simms, counsel for Ms Lyons Doyle, told the court.
"He did not acknowledge Ms Lyons Doyle as the artist nor did he seek her permission to use the painting on the cover of his book," Mr Simms said
Mr Barnwell and Ms Lyons Doyle, Upper Glenageary Road, Glenageary, ended up locked in a copyright battle in the Circuit Civil Court, Judge Linnane heard.
Ms Lyons Doyle not only sought a declaration that copyright in the painting lay with her, she also sought exemplary damages for his having failed to concede she was the artist.
Judge Linnane, who was told that a few of the facts were in dispute and having heard an outline of the case, inquired, since the parties were close neighbours, if inter-party talks might help to resolve matters.
After a break, Mr Lewis said the case had been settled on the basis that Mr Barnwell apologised for the use of the image without Ms Lyons Doyle's consent and without identifying her as the author of the painting.
He said that Mr Barnwell further accepted that the painting was an original work of art and that Ms Lyons Doyle was a professional artist.
Mr Lewis said Mr Barnwell undertook not to use the image on any reprint of the book or to copy the painting without Ms Lyons Doyle's consent.
Judge Linnane was told the parties had been unable to reach an agreement on who should pay the legal costs and directed, following legal argument, that Ms Lyons Doyle's costs should be paid by Mr Barnwell on the lowest Circuit Court scale.