Ousted library director wins $475,000 settlement in discrimination lawsuit against Montgomery County; Houston Public Media, May 22, 2026

Kyle McClenagan

, Houston Public Media ; Ousted library director wins $475,000 settlement in discrimination lawsuit against Montgomery County

"Rhea Young, who served as the director of the Montgomery County library system from 2022 until her termination in January 2025, sued the county last year, alleging she was fired in retaliation for refusing to segregate and limit access to books containing LGBTQ+ themes or ideas. On Wednesday, commissioners for the Houston-area county approved the settlement following a closed-door discussion.

Young will receive $475,000 as part of the settlement, of which $206,797 will be used for attorney's fees, according to a copy of the settlement shared with Houston Public Media." 

Richard Prince to Pay Photographers Who Sued Over Copyright; The New York Times, January 26, 2024

Matt Stevens, The New York Times; Richard Prince to Pay Photographers Who Sued Over Copyright

"The artist Richard Prince agreed to pay at least $650,000 to two photographers whose images he had incorporated in his own work, ending a long-running copyright dispute that had been closely monitored by the art world...

Brian Sexton, a lawyer for Prince, said the artist wanted to protect free expression and have copyright law catch up to changing technology...

Marriott said the judgments showed that copyright law still provided meaningful protection to creators and that the internet was not a copying free-for-all.

“There is not a fair use exception to copyright law that applies to the famous and another that applies to everyone else,” he said."

Marvel Settles Fight Over Spider-Man, Doctor Strange Rights; The Hollywood Reporter, December 8, 2023

Ashley Cullins, The Hollywood Reporter; Marvel Settles Fight Over Spider-Man, Doctor Strange Rights

"It looks like Marvel won’t be bringing its battle over the rights to Spider-Man and Doctor Strange into the new year. Attorneys for the company and the estate of Steve Ditko on Wednesday notified the court that they’ve reached an amicable settlement and expect a stipulation of dismissal with prejudice to be filed in the coming weeks.

This all started back in 2021, when Marvel filed a series of lawsuits in response to copyright termination notices from Larry Lieber and the estates of Gene Colan, Steve Ditko, Don Heck and Don Rico. A very long list of characters were at issue, including Iron Man, Captain America, Black Widow, Hulk and Thor. In June, all but one of the matters settled."

Former Weld County librarian wins settlement after district fired her for promoting LGBTQ, anti-racism programs; Colorado Public Radio (CPR), September 22, 2023

  Matt Bloom, Colorado Public Radio (CPR); Former Weld County librarian wins settlement after district fired her for promoting LGBTQ, anti-racism programs

"A former librarian will receive $250,000 from the High Plains Library District as part of a settlement in a lengthy civil rights dispute over her firing. 

Brooky Parks lost her job at Erie Community Library in 2021 after promoting anti-racism and LGBTQ history workshops for teens. The programming drew backlash from the district’s board of trustees, which oversees more than a dozen public libraries across Northern Colorado.

Members of the Colorado Civil Rights Commission signed off on the financial agreement on Friday, making it official. It also drops discrimination charges against the district and includes requirements that district leaders update their programming policies to be more inclusive. 

“I feel validated and really vindicated,” Parks said. “I think this sends a message to all libraries that there’s consequences for retaliation against people and that libraries are meant to serve all members of the community.”"