Judge Tosses Hasselbeck Plagiarism Suit, Woman Sues Again!

Celiac.com 12/02/2009 - It's off-again, on-again for the plagiarism lawsuit against , co-host of TV's The View.

Recently, a judge dismissed a plagiarism suit against Elisabeth Hasselbeck for her book called The gluten-free Diet: A Gluten-Free Survival Guide. The judge threw out the original complaint because a rival celiac disease author, Susan Hassett, failed to provide supporting documentation for her claim.

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Barely two weeks later, Hassett, author of the self-published, Living With Celiac Disease author, has filed a second lawsuit, in U.S. District Court in Massachusetts, alleging copyright infringement. Hasselbeck's book is published by Center Street press, and made the New York Times Bestseller list.

Hassett contends that the judged tossed her first plagiarism suit on a technicality, and that this time, she has included ample evidence to support her claim that Hasselbeck stole from her her "scrupulously researched" book.

For her part, Hasselbeck has called the charge of plagiarism and copyright infringement "baseless." In addition to the plagiarism charge, Hassett has added an allegation that Hasselbeck includes information in her book that is "misleading and dangerous" to Celiac Disease sufferers.

Hassett claims that she sent a copy of her book to Hasselbeck well before Hasselbeck's book was released, and that Hasselbeck has wrongly borrowed from Hassett's book. Whether Hasselbeck's ghostwriter ever saw the book remains unknown.

Stay tuned for updates on this intriguing and ever-changing story.