Kidman Has Law on Her Side in Libel Case

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Nicole Kidman claimed a five-figure financial settlement and an apology Tuesday from the British tabloid the Sun after the paper said last March that she had an affair with her "Cold Mountain" costar Jude Law and caused the breakup of his marriage.

According to Reuters, the Sun admitted in London's High Court that the allegations about the Oscar winner for "The Hours" were untrue.

"The defendants apologize to the claimant for the distress and embarrassment this article has caused," said the Sun's lawyer Daniel Taylor.

Kidman's lawyer, Keith Schilling, said in court that the Sun story "meant and was understood to mean that the claimant (Kidman) had had an adulterous affair with Jude Law, who was at the time married with young children."

He added: "The article implied that the claimant had led Jude Law to cheat on his wife Sadie Frost and by her behavior caused the breakdown of their marriage."

Kidman, 37, who was not in court for the decision, said in a statement afterward: "I am glad that this has finally been resolved."

She reportedly will donate the damages received from this case (minus the legal fees) and from an earlier legal action to Fara, a charity that helps Romania's abandoned children.

Two months ago, Kidman won damages against another British newspaper that had published the same claims.

The marriage of Law and his wife Sadie Frost triggered widespread media coverage in Britain earlier in the year. The two have since formally separated.