Lindsay Not Ready for Close-Up in Crash Suit

Lindsay Lohan's lips won't be sealed when it comes to testifying in her pending negligence lawsuit. But if she has her way, her deposition will.

In court papers filed in Los Angeles Superior Court, the rehabbed actress' attorneys are seeking to prevent her Dec. 3 deposition from being videotaped, and, should that motion be denied, to ensure that any would-be recordings remain under seal.

"The court should act to prevent such an unwarranted invasion of [Lohan's] privacy, especially where the nature of the allegations...are so inflammatory," states the motion, which was submitted Friday and made public today.

In addition to preempting any potential leaks of the would-be taping, Team Lohan is swinging for the fences and seeking to have all related depositions and witness testimony sealed as well.

The motion was filed due to the intense media interest in the case, her lawyers said, as manifested by coverage of what amounted to a rather "mundane" hearing in the matter on Sept. 11. Lohan was not even present when the judge denied her request to dismiss portions of the lawsuit.

Superior Court Judge Michael L. Stern declined to immediately rule on the videotape issue, instead saying he would consider the motion at a Nov. 28 hearing.

If very recent precedent is any indication, Lohan may be successful in her bid to avoid the prying eye of the court's cameras. On the same day Lohan's attorneys filed their paperwork, a separate judge granted Britney Spears' identical request not to be videotaped in a deposition relating to her child custody suit, ruling that the likelihood of it leaking to the media was too great a risk.

Lohan's deposition stems from a negligence suit filed in June by Raymond Ortega. The busboy claims the Mean Girls star had been drinking at the Ivy and then triggered an October 2005 car crash that left his van totaled. He also asserts the star was not paying attention to the road because she was fleeing a flock of paparazzi.

Ortega is seeking $200,000 in damages from the suit.

Last month, shortly after Stern declined to dismiss portions of the suit against her, Lohan filed a negligence countersuit against Ortega. She denied she was under the influence at the time of the smashup and insisted he was at fault for the crash as he was making an illegal U-turn at the time of the accident.

Lohan cited a California Highway Patrol report of the incident, which states she was sober and that Ortega was responsible. Ortega's lawyer claims the report is "hearsay" because no field-sobriety test was conducted.

For her troubles, the actress is seeking $75,000 in damages to cover repairs to her black Mercedes-Benz SL65 and the cost of rental cars.