Spears files libel suit against Us

Britney Spears has filed a $20 million libel lawsuit against Us Weekly, charging that the celebrity magazine published a false story reporting she and husband Kevin Federline had made a sex tape and were worried about its release.

The lawsuit, filed Monday, seeks $10 million in libel damages and $10 million for misappropriating the 24-year-old pop singer’s name and image to promote sales. The suit says no such sex tape exists.

“We have a very credible source and we stand by our story,” Us Weekly spokesman Alex Dudley responded Tuesday in a statement.

Spears and Us Weekly also tangled in February after the magazine published pictures of her October honeymoon in the Fiji Islands.

She issued a statement criticizing the magazine for publishing photos taken by resort staff members. Us Weekly responded with its own statement saying Spears had sold pictures of her wedding and stepdaughter to publications.