'Friends' Star Lisa Kudrow Loses $1.6 Million Lawsuit
Feb. 26, 2014 — -- A verdict has been reached in the civil lawsuit filed against Lisa Kudrow by her former manager, who claims he is owed residuals from her days on "Friends."
A 10-2 decision was reached in favor of Scott Howard, who was Kudrow's manager from 1991 to 2007, saying the actress was liable for breach of contract, KABC reports.
The jury awarded the plaintiff $1.6 million for past and future economic losses.
The legal dispute began in 2008, a year after they parted ways, when Howard, sued Kudrow for refusing to pay him more than $50,000 in fees from her earnings.
Howard claimed in court last week that in 1991, the two made an oral agreement that Howard would receive a 10 percent cut of Kudrow's income she obtained or performed while he was her manager.
Read: Lisa Kudrow to Testify in Court Battle with Ex-Manager
He added that when he and Kudrow split after 16 years of working together, the actress stopped paying him. He argued that Kudrow owes him a percentage of what she earns on "Friends" reruns and other projects.
In a statement, Kudrow’s attorney Gerald Sauer said, "The jury’s verdict is merely one step in the legal process. This case ultimately will be resolved at the appellate level. Ms. Kudrow has faith in the judicial system, and she believes that the eventual outcome of this contractual dispute will be in her favor."
In a statement of his own, Scott Howard’s attorney Mark Baute countered, "What generally happens now with unsophisticated actress clients is they overpay for filing a frivolous appeal that has no chance for success. The verdict is rock solid, and we look forward to collecting 10 percent, 16,000 dollars a month, in post-judgment interest while their frivolous appeal is pending. We will collect that interest for two years, which is how long it will take for the Court of Appeal to affirm this jury's righteous verdict."
In court documents, Kudrow had claimed she had "no obligation to pay Howard" a commission after the two ended their professional partnership. Attorneys for Kudrow countered that Howard was the actress's manager, not her agent, and thus is not entitled to a commission.
Kudrow, 50, starred from 1994 through 2004 as Phoebe on "Friends." She began the show as one of the lowest-paid actresses among the show's six stars – earning $13,500 per episode. Starting in 2004, Kudrow earned over $1 million for each of the show's final 18 episodes.
ABC News' Susanna Kim and Vania Stuelp contributed to this report.
