The Secret (2006 Film) - Legal Controversies

Legal Controversies

On April 2007 actor and Hollywood publicist Ricarte Rivera, founder of Dragon 8 PR received a letter from The Secret LLC attorneys. Mr. Rivera, who is the first public relations agent to receive a January 3rd 2007 call from Harpo Productions about featuring The Secret, was accused of "effectively distributing" their copyrighted material to the public losing them millions of dollars. None of the parties has ever pursued legal action against each other.

The Australian Nine Network's A Current Affair—an Australian TV tabloid show—on 14 May 2007 segment titled, "The Secret Stoush", interviews Australian author Vanessa J. Bonnette. In the interview, Bonnette—when referring to the book version of The Secret—asserts, "that is my work and Rhonda Byrne has stolen it". Bonnette and a reporter compare her book to Byrne's on the use of the "TV transmission" analogy. Bonnette's book, Empowered for the New Era (2003 Empowered For Life) will be released in 2007 as a second edition. Bonnette, at her website, claims 100 instances of plagiarism. Byrne's marketing company, TS Production LLC, has responded with a lawsuit to restrain Bonnette. From the statement of claim:

Analogy between frequency transmissions, including a television station transmission via a frequency, and humans and human thought is used by many persons in the field of self-help and motivation.

David Schirmer, the "investment guru"—and only Australian—in the film, has his business activities under investigation by the Australian Securities Investment Commission (ASIC). This was reported on 1 June 2007 by A Current Affair in a segment titled "The Secret Con" with those words and The Secret logo appearing in the background behind the newscaster. The show initially confronted Schirmer in a segment titled "The Secret Exposed", aired on 28 May 2007, with complaints from people who say Schirmer owed them money.

On February 12, 2008 Bob Proctor's company, LifeSuccess Productions, L.L.C. successfully sued "investment guru" David Schirmer, his wife Lorna, and their several companies (including LifeSuccess Pacific Rim PTY LTD, Schirmer Financial Management PTY LTD, LifeSuccess Productions PTY LTD, Excellence in Marketing PTY LTD, and Wealth By Choice PTY LTC) for "misleading or deceptive conduct".

In August 2008, The Australian reported that Drew Heriot (director) and Dan Hollings (Internet consultant for The Secret) were in a legal dispute with Rhonda Byrne over pay from the project.

Film footage featuring Esther Hicks was removed from the later "Extended Edition" of The Secret after film's creator Rhonda Byrne rescinded the original contract covering Hicks' participation, and asked that Hicks relinquish her "intellectual property rights in these areas forever". In an open letter posted on the internet, Hicks stated that she had been "uncomfortable with what felt to us like a rather aggressive marketing campaign," and that ultimately Abraham gave her the following advice: "Whenever you are given an ultimatum that says, 'if you don't do this, then we will have to do such and such,' it is best that you just let it go and move on. Otherwise there is always another, and this, and this, and this?"

Hicks has since posted a video on YouTube further explaining her discomfort with The Secret and finally, her decision to discontinue involvement with the film.