Jeff Koons Defeats Louis XIV Descendant in Court Battle Over Versailles Exhibit

While Jeff Koons didn’t seem to do too well in front of judges last year, losing a custody battle in the European Court of Human Rights of all places, 2009 is shaping up to be more litigiously kind to him. As we recently reported, a descendant of Louis XIV, Charles Emmanuel de Bourbon-Parme, was attempting to get Koons and his popular exhibit kicked out of Versailles, claiming that “the exhibition is a ‘profanization’ of the work of his royal forefather.” But in the end, profanity won out, as an administrative court decided to dismiss the suit:

A judge rejected the complaint, saying, “The existence of a right to live without the profanation of one’s ancestors and of a right to access knowledge of heritage without pornographic constraints does not constitute a fundamental freedom.”

So now he’s vowed to head to a higher court to keep the battle going, despite the fact that Koons’ exhibit ended just this past Sunday. But really, when you’re a descendant of the Sun King and your name is that long, what else do you have to fill your day?

Create a social media strategy, launch your campaign, and track the results in our Social Media Marketing Boot Camp starting February 16. The online event and workshop will feature speakers including The Onion‘s Baratunde Thurston (left), Facebook’s Morin Oluwole, and bitly’s Tim Devane. Register now.