10 Biggest Celebrity Lawsuits

Loss of Money, Loss of Reputation, Wrongful Death

Everyone loves a train wreck, and celebrities are more than happy to provide us with them. Sometimes things go beyond simple embarrassing behavior into new heights of nastiness, however, and the legal system gets involved. Here are ten of the biggest lawsuits involving celebrities.

10. The People Vs. Michael Jackson

Not to speak ill of the dead, but one of the biggest celebrity lawsuits of recent years concerned the self-proclaimed King of Pop's predilection for spending the night with young boys. Jackson was accused of abduction, conspiracy, intoxicating a minor and child molestation. Eventually found not guilty of all charges, it was a public-relations nightmare for Jackson and he was never viewed the same again by many.

9. Carol Burnett Vs. the National Enquirer

Until the early '80s, the National Enquirer, and many other gossip magazines and newspapers, operated pretty much with impunity. Libel is hard to prove, and the bother seemed worse to most celebrities than just letting unfounded rumors die away. In 1981, however, Carol Burnett struck back, hitting the Enquirer with a multimillion-dollar lawsuit concerning an allegation of public drunkenness which appeared in the tabloid. She won $1.6 million, thought this amount came down on appeal.

8. Lee Marvin Vs. Michelle Triola Marvin

When actor Lee Marvin split with Michelle, she didn't take it easily. She sued for support, and won. The case became historic because the Marvins had lived together for years but had never been legally married. The case coined the term "palimony" and is now cited as the law of the land.

7. Woody Allen Vs. Mia Farrow

Celebrity divorces are nothing new, but the Allen-Farrow one was not your average divorce. The ground were that Allen had begun a relationship with Farrow's own adopted daughter, begun when the girl was well below the age of consent. The resulting publicity sidelined Allen's career for years (he still has not completely recovered) and made him the both the butt of public jokes and utter contempt.

6. Anna Nicole Smith Vs. the Marshall Family