Harry Potter encyclopedia suspended

A planned Harry Potter encyclopedia has been delayed after the publisher was sued by writer J.K. Rowling.

The Harry Potter Lexicon volume, based on material from an internet fan site of the same name, was due for publication later this month.

But the book was hit with an embargo after Rowling filed a lawsuit against the publishers last month, which has seen a New York judge issuing an order barring completion, distribution, marketing or advance sales of the book indefinitely.

Harry Potter Lexicon will not be published until a judge rules on whether it violates Rowling's intellectual property rights.

Roger Rapoport, the book's publisher, has given a copy to lawyers at Warner Brothers - who hold the Potter copyright - to determine whether the encyclopaedia is in violation of copyright.

He says: "I think they should drop it. I'm hopeful that they will."

Rowling however insists she is disappointed by the situation: "On the contrary, I feel massively disappointed that this matter had to come to court at all. Given my past good relations with the Lexicon fan site, I can only feel sad and disillusioned that this is where we have ended up."