Indiana

Lawsuit claim Lohan stole sunless tanning lotion formula that retails at Sephora.

Tampa, FL?Lindsey Lohan and her business partner, Lorit Simon, are embroiled in a lawsuit, accusing the pair of stealing a St. Petersburg chemist?s formula for Lohan?s sunless tanning line, Sevin Nyne. The New York Daily News reported, the chemist, Jennifer Sunday, alleges Simon and Lohan breached their signed confidentiality agreement after the duo were made privy of Sunday?s exclusive tanning formula.

Lohan teamed up with the business woman, Simon, who owns a Las Vegas business, that applies airbrush tans to celebrities and high profile clients to help develop the sunless tanning concoction, Sevin Nyne. The lawsuit, which was filed in a Tampa, Florida, federal court, charges Lohan, Simon, and Simon?s company for breach of contract, theft of trade secrets, civil conspiracy, intentional indifference with contractual relations, and deceptive and unfair trade practices. Sunday and Simon were reportedly in negotiations when Simon was shown the sunless formula at Sunday?s company, White Wave International Labs, but they never confirmed an agreement.

Sevin Nyne, which is remarkably similar to Sundays formula, contains, goji berries, caramel, Chardonnay extracts, and a sugar free coconut base. Lohan?s ?sunless secret? was launched this summer at Sephora and is reportedly being retailed for $35. According to the Sephora website http://www.sephora.com, a portion of the proceeds of Sevin Nyne are being used to benefit skin cancer awareness charities.

According to the St. Petersburg Times, Sunday is suing Lohan, Simon, and Simon?s company for breach of contract, theft of trade secrets, civil conspiracy, intentional interference with contractual relations and deceptive and unfair trade practices.

In January, Sunday?s company, White Wave International Labs, signed a confidentiality agreement with Simon. Sunday claims that the two sides had been in negotiations, but had not reached an agreement on pricing.

"The next thing we know, Lorit Simon and Lindsay Lohan are partnering and Ms. Lohan is taking credit for developing this formula, which she indeed had no role in," Cohen told the St. Petersburg Times on Monday.

Okay, I do not know much about Ms. Lohan other what I have seen in the news and from watching one and one-half of her movies. From what I do know, I cannot see her as an inventor.

Which leads me to wonder what is her connection to the theft of trade secrets. As a partner to an offending party, she could be liable but that is the danger of partnerships.

The third party interference claim makes some sense in the abstract and you can read my article here on that subject.

It maybe that there is more to it than merely looking for a deep pocket, but I would have to see more information to overcome my skepticism.