Kate Morton sued by former literary agent

A literary agent who doesn’t “believe in contracts” is suing Australian author Kate Morton over allegedly breaching an agreement, according to the Sydney Morning Herald.

The newspaper said agent Selwa Anthony began court proceedings in New South Wales after Morton (pictured) sacked her in 2015 following a longstanding working relationship. Anthony is suing for breach of contract, claiming Morton agreed she would get 15% commission of all monies earned by the author for the life of the works for which she negotiated the publishing agreement.

The agreement was made over the telephone, she claims.

Morton denied a phone conversation discussing the 15% figure took place and said she instead understood “over time” that Anthony would be paid 15% of any advances from publishers.

“My understanding was when I decided to terminate Selwa’s agency I didn’t owe an ongoing entitlement,” she said.

News of the spat between the author and agent broke last year, when Morton accused Anthony of favouring her own interests. Morton claimed her former agent deprived her of further income by failing to get her the best publishing deal when she was an unpublished and inexperienced author, and said she was seeking a refund of up to AUS$2.8m paid in commission.

Morton now lives in the UK and is represented by David Higham Associates.