Claims deemed 'too vague' to succeed

Lawyers representing two villagers in Glod, which was used as a stand-in for Borat’s Kazakh hometown, claimed they had been exploited and misled about the nature of the film.

But District Judge Loretta Preska told the lawyers they must make more specific allegations before she could order the producers to hand over documents that might help the villagers build their case.

Romanians Nicolae Todorache and Spiridom Ciorebea are seeking £15 million damages after discovering the footage – which they thought was for a documentary highlighting their poverty – was, in fact, for a satire.

But Slade Metcalf, a lawyer for 20th Century Fox, successfully argued that the lawsuit was not specific enough to be considered by the court.

He said the company should not have to turn over documents for a ‘fishing expedition’ by the opposing lawyers to see if any papers were improperly prepared.

Lawyers for the Romanian villages said they would be refilling the lawsuit.

Published: 5 Dec 2006