Paramount settles lawsuit with family of 'Godfather' author

By Nate Raymond

NEW YORK (Reuters) - The studio that made "The Godfather" movies has settled a lawsuit with the estate of author Mario Puzo, who created the Mafia family saga.

Paramount Pictures Corp sued in February in an attempt to block a new book in the "Godfather" series, which it said was being published without its permission and in violation of copyright agreements.

Notice of the settlement was filed in the U.S. District Court in New York on Thursday, but terms were not disclosed as the "parties have agreed that the terms of the settlement are confidential," said Richard Kendall, a lawyer for Paramount, a unit of Viacom Inc.

"We're very pleased with the settlement," said Bertram Fields, a lawyer for the Puzo estate.

Puzo, who died in 1999, was the author of the 1969 bestseller "The Godfather" and other novels on the same theme.

Paramount sued Puzo's estate in February, saying it had approved sequels without the movie studio's permission and in violation of its copyrights.

The family had received Paramount's permission for the publication of only one sequel, "The Godfather Returns," by Mark Winegardner, in 2004.

The Puzo family moved ahead with a second sequel, "The Godfather's Revenge," by Winegardner in 2006, without Paramount's permission, the lawsuit said.