Lawsuit dropped in battle of Bratz

Barbie maker Mattel Inc has dropped its lawsuit against a former employee over the design of the rival Bratz dolls, according to a spokeswoman and an attorney for the giant toy maker.

In a motion posted online on the eve of jury selection, Mattel said it wanted claims and counterclaims against Carter Bryant to be dismissed with prejudice.

"We have reached a settlement that includes dismissal of claims against Carter Bryant," said John Quinn, a lawyer representing Mattel.

He said the motion had been approved by a judge, but he declined further comment.

The motion posted online also called for Mattel and Bryant to pay their own attorney fees.

Mattel's copyright infringement lawsuit still seeks a piece of the Bratz franchise marketed by MGA Entertainment Inc.

Jury selection in that case was still scheduled to begin yesterday in Riverside federal court.

A Mattel spokeswoman said the company felt "vindicated" by a recent summary judgment, which helped prompt it to settle the lawsuit against Bryant while it continues litigation with MGA.

"The court in a recent summary judgment has ruled that anything Mr Bryant created while he worked at Mattel is owned by Mattel," Lisa Marie Bongiovanni said in a written statement. "Since that time, we have successfully negotiated an agreement with Mr Bryant and we are pleased that we have negotiated terms of a resolution."

Attorney John Keker, who represents Bryant, declined to comment, but an attorney for MGA said the settlement "did not come as a surprise."

"We never thought they had a case against Carter in the first instance," said Thomas J. Nolan, the lead trial lawyer for MGA.

"When you walk away from a US$35 million claim on the eve of jury selection, you know something is wrong with your case. We look forward to the trial and proving that MGA owns Bratz and always has."

Mattel filed the original lawsuit in 2004 against Bryant, one of its former doll designers, accusing him of wrongfully selling his Bratz ideas to MGA while he was under contract to Mattel.

Bryant has said he became inspired to create Bratz between two stints at Mattel, and it wasn't anything more than an idea until he left the company.