Birkhead wins suit against former lawyer

LOS ANGELES - Larry Birkhead won a small victory in court over his former attorney Debra Opri earlier Thursday.

Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Charles C. Lee froze over half a million dollars currently being held in Opri’s account, money which Birkhead claims is his.

Birkhead sued for the money, earned in a television deal with Bravo, which he claims Opri took illegally. The lawyer had earlier filed her own petition with the court in May, claiming Birkhead owes her over $600,000 for legal fees, which she wants to see handled by arbitration.

Opri was Birkhead’s lawyer for several months as he fought to prove he was the father of Anna Nicole Smith’s daughter Dannielynn. The two parted ways in March of 2007.

According to City News Service, neither party objected to the ruling today. Judge Lee also issued a tentative ruling denying Opri’s arbitration request but he will continue to review the motions before making a final ruling. That decision is expected by early next week.

Calls to Birkhead and Opri’s reps were not returned at press time.

The Bravo cable network is owned by NBC Universal, the same company that owns “Access Hollywood.”