World IN BRIEF : BRITAIN : Queen Threatens Copyright Suit

Lawyers for Queen Elizabeth II have threatened legal action for alleged copyright infringement against Britain’s Sun newspaper, which printed her annual Christmas Day message two days early, the newspaper said. Buckingham Palace confirmed that the queen’s lawyers had sent a letter to the tabloid newspaper. The Sun said the letter said court action would be taken unless the newspaper agreed to pay cash damages and costs. The queen’s traditional Christmas message to Britain and the Commonwealth is usually distributed to the media in advance under strict embargo. A Sun spokesman said the paper did not consider itself bound by the embargo because it had not received an official copy.