The case was eventually moved to the United States Court of Appeals. In the year-long court battle that ensued, Murphy, representing himself, fought both the $500,000 fee award and the $125,000 bond motion. Lawyers from the law firm of Winston & Strawn representing Effie Film successfully blocked Murphy’s petition for pro bono counsel, and filed a motion that Murphy be required to put up a bond of $125,000 before his case could be heard on appeal. Murphy filed an appeal, but in debt for hundreds of thousands of dollars as the result of the initial lawsuit instigated by Effie Film, petitioned the Court for pro bono counsel. The District Court then ordered Murphy to reimburse Effie Film, LLC $500,000 for its legal fees. The judge’s ruling was based on a second, revised screenplay that the court allowed Emma Thompson to submit in the middle of the case, which Murphy called "unprecedented." Murphy appealed against the ruling, but the Second Circuit rejected Murphy's appeal. The matter was decided in Emma Thompson's favour in March 2013. Murphy also penned an unproduced screenplay on the same topic. Another copyright dispute arose, with playwright Gregory Murphy, author of the play The Countess which had been positively received, and ran Off-Broadway for 634 performances during the 1999/00 season. The judge ruled in December 2012 that Thompson's script was not in breach of copyright and could be released. One of the scripts had been produced as a stage play. Eve Pomerance, author of two scripts on the same subject as Thompson's screenplay, brought the first case. Release of the film, originally titled Effie, was delayed by a series of court actions.
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