Chalk it down as a pre-launch publicity dream or a legal nightmare.

Either way, Pulitzer prize winner Ronan Farrow’s new expose book on serial sexual abusers Catch and Kill: Lies, Spies and a Conspiracy to Protect Predators is “definitely” going to be published on October 15.

That is according to UK publishers Little, Brown who are standing over the work and its author, having spent the past few weeks locked in legal battle with former National Enquirer editor, Dylan Howard.

Howard, a celebrity tabloid journalist who got caught up in the maelstrom of the #MeToo era for allegedly providing movie mogul Harvey Weinstein with information about actress Rose McGowan who accused the former Miramax boss of rape, has hired a full clip of lawyers in an attempt to suppress the book over allegedly defamatory material contained within it, according to reports in US news site, The Daily Beast.

The legal teams mentioned in the article include New York’s Kravet and Vogel, Sydney-based McLachlan Thorpe and the UK and Irish based Tweed, set up by renowned Belfast media lawyer Paul Tweed.

While an advance copy of the book was not made available to Howard, it is understood certain allegations contained within it were put to him prior to publication, which he maintains are libellously false and inaccurate.

The cover of Ronan Farrow’s new book, Catch and Kill

This has resulted in a multi-jurisdictional legal row in which Farrow’s publishers have been warned not to print the contentious material or face a defamation suit.

Distributors, such as booksellers, have also been put on notice of the threat of legal action.

When contacted yesterday, Paul Tweed confirmed to The Currency that his firm was acting for Howard, having represented the entertainment journalist previously during the #MeToo era.  The journalist got in touch with him around two weeks ago.

He said that Howard, as a member of the media, supports free speech, but that this was not “a free speech scenario”.

“The whole thing is to stop the damage being done. This is not about money,” Tweed said. The solicitor, who has previously represented Hollywood stars such as Jessica Biel, Liam Neeson and Justin Timberlake added: “If they speak to the truth and facts, the publishers have nothing to fear.”

In the event that Howard sues, Tweed would not specify his client’s preferred jurisdiction but noted that his firm operates out of London, Belfast and Dublin.

Separately, when asked by The Currency about a recent round of golf he played with the Duke of York, Prince Andrew, at an official event in the Royal Portrush Golf Club, Tweed declined to comment.  The Duke has been in the spotlight over his ties to the late convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.

The Australian born Howard has an interesting media background. He started off on the domestic Channel 7 network before moving to New York in 2008. He joined American Media Inc (AMI) and quickly rose to chief content officer and vice president at the stable that produces the National Inquirer, Us Weekly and OK.

David Pecker’s AMI has been weathering a storm after admitting last year that it worked in concert with Trump’s campaign to bury and bury damaging stories during his 2016 presidential campaign.

Earlier this year, in his editorial role at the National Inquirer, Howard was accused by the world’s richest man Jeff Bezos, Amazon founder and owner of The Washington Post, of trying to blackmail him with a penis picture he had sent to his girlfriend during an extramarital affair.

Howard was allegedly sidelined following the controversy but is now making a movie documentary with Martin Sheen about the John F. Kennedy’s assassination called Rush to Judgment II.

Farrow, a contributor to The New Yorker magazine, won the 2018 Pulitzer Prize for Public Service in journalism for uncovering the Weinstein allegations.

Having confirmed that publication would go ahead as planned in the next fortnight, a spokesperson for his UK publisher Little, Brown said they were unable to comment on any legal issues.