ANNA NICOLE SMITH - STERN HEADING TO TRIAL OVER SMITH BOOK

STERN HEADING TO TRIAL OVER SMITH BOOK

ANNA NICOLE SMITH's lawyer-turned-lover HOWARD K. STERN is heading back to court over a steamy tell-all book about the star - a judge has granted him permission to take his defamation lawsuit to trial.
Stern has filed suit against the Hachette Book Group and TV reporter-turned-writer Rita Cosby, accusing them of libel over a string of accusations made against him in Blonde Ambition: The Untold Story Behind Anna Nicole Smith's Death.
The book about the late star makes a series of claims about Stern's sexuality, alleging Smith possessed a sex tape featuring Stern and her boyfriend Larry Birkhead. Stern insists the footage doesn't exist.
At a hearing in a New York court on Wednesday (12Aug09), U.S. District Judge Denny Chin ruled that Stern's suit included enough evidence to warrant a trial - meaning a jury will now decide the outcome of the case.
Judge Chin dropped the publisher as a defendant and dismissed eight of 19 libellous statements allegedly made in the book.
Cosby's lawyer, Elizabeth MCNamara, insists her client is confident of victory in the ongoing legal dispute, telling E! Online, "As to the remaining statements, we are fully confident that a jury will dismiss them as well once it hears all the evidence surrounding Howard K. Stern's life with Anna Nicole Smith."
Stern's attorney, L. Lin Wood, said his client was "very pleased" with the judge's decision
The $60 million (£41 million) suit asks for compensatory and punitive damages.