Superstars team up for clothing store lawsuit

Beyonce and her husband Jay Z have teamed up with Kanye West, Pharrell Williams and Rihanna to sue a clothing brand.

The superstars have joined forces to file a lawsuit against bosses of French company ElevenParis amid a dispute over image rights.

They have accused company chiefs of selling a number of products, such as hats and T-shirts, featuring their pictures without permission from the image rights holders.

Among the disputed products are items emblazoned with phrases such as "Kanye is my Homie" and "Pharrell is my Brotha" as well as song lyrics.

The lawsuit states company executives are "habitual, willful intellectual property infringers that, without authorization (sic), usurp the trademarks, copyrights and other rights of A-list celebrities".

The news comes two years after Rihanna won a similar legal battle with bosses of British brand Topshop.

The Umbrella singer took the company to court over a line of T-shirts which featured her picture, and in 2013 she won an injunction banning store bosses from selling the tops.

She was also granted costs, and Topshop chiefs were ordered to pay her $1.6 million legal bill following a series of appeals.