Invicta Capital, a specialist financial advisor for private clients, has reassured investors that a copyright claim against "The Da Vinci Co...

Invicta Capital, a specialist financial advisor for private clients, has reassured investors that a copyright claim against "The Da Vinci Code" author Dan Brown in the High Court in London will not alter their tax benefits gained, should they take part in a scheme to fund the forthcoming film version of the book. Even if the film’s release were to be delayed, the Invicta sale and leaseback arrangement would not be affected, as this arrangement is only dependent on the film being completed. The £10 million ($17.5 million) claim by co-authors Michael Baigent and Richard Leigh, who wrote the book, “The Holy Blood and the Holy Grail”, in 1984, is for breach of copyright on the grounds that the structure of their book was plagiarised by Dan Brown for The Da Vinci Code. Mohammed Yusef, chairman and co-founder of Invicta Capital, told WealthBriefing: “Sony is not a party to the litigation and the film is not a party to it. The plaintiffs are only looking for money and not an injunction, which they would not get in any jurisdiction." The sale and leaseback scheme is complex: known as a section 42, it involves the investor becoming part of a limited liability partnership, to offset commercial risk. Their investment is used to capitalise the partnership, whereby they become part owner of the film which is then leased back to the studio, in this case Sony. It works out that investors pay a fifteenth of the tax they were liable to have paid had they not taken part in the scheme. The advantage to the studio is that it gets an upfront payment as if it had re-mortgaged its assets. Ploughing funds into film has always been strictly an alternative investment, with only one in 20 British films actually making any money, but thanks to the current regulation, risk can be offset against these considerable tax benefits. Mr Yusef, added: “With a big title like Da Vinci Code investors are attracted to the prestige of being involved. Because the UK Government’s sale and leaseback scheme is ending next month this film will be the last project available to private clients. People taking part today are buying into three years of tax shelter.” The Da Vinci Code is currently in the final stages of post-production and is due to be premiered at the Cannes Film Festival. It is set for release in Britain on May 19.