This week on Legally Us, Rachael Bennett, a certified family law specialist and senior attorney at Sullivan Law & Associates, breaks down what legal actions Bravo could take against the source at the center of the Summer House season 10 reunion leak.
On Sunday, April 26, Bravo revealed that they had concluded their investigation into the unauthorized audio recording and that it was “distributed by an individual involved in the production of the reunion.”
They added in a statement to Us Weekly, “As a result of the findings, appropriate action has been taken.”
“This is most certainly going to be considered a breach of contract between Bravo and the production member,” Bennett tells Us. “On closed sets like these all of the staff and the production team will typically sign pretty hefty NDAs and confidentiality agreements, which means that Bravo can not only terminate that production member’s employment, they can also go after them for monetary damages.”
Summer House filmed its season 10 reunion on April 23, shortly before a clip of Ciara Miller confronting costars Amanda Batula and West Wilson over their relationship surfaced online. Bravo immediately opened an investigation into the matter to determine the source of the leak, who they said was not a member of the cast.
A rep for the network noted, “We are aware that there is additional improperly obtained audio circulating and we caution all parties and platforms to refrain from posting, sharing or amplifying any unauthorized audio.”
“Media outlets can be sued under copyright infringement laws for distributing the recording, and if Bravo is aggressive enough, it can use the DMCA [Digital Millennium Copyright Act] to get videos and articles containing that audio taken down and off the internet,” Bennett explains. “I would say fans have less to worry about, especially if they’re just passively viewing something that’s already been made public, but if they repost the audio on social media, those posts can definitely be removed from platforms like Instagram and Tiktok, and fans could risk having their account suspended or flagged for copyright violations.
The reunion will address the complicated dynamic between Ciara, 30, Amanda, 34, and West, 31. Ciara and West had a casual relationship in 2023 and briefly reconnected earlier this year. By March, however, West and Amanda — Ciara’s best friend — revealed their platonic bond had developed into a romantic connection while she was going through her split from estranged husband Kyle Cooke.
In a joint statement last month, West and Amanda shared, “We’ve supported each other as friends for years, through both good times and challenges, and what’s unfolded recently caught us both off guard. Our relationship naturally grew from a deep, long-standing friendship, which is why we felt it was important to handle it thoughtfully.”
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