THE Australian director of the international self-help phenomenon The Secret is suing its creator Rhonda Byrne for $150 million.

The director Drew Heriot claims he is owed the money from Ms Byrne, originally from Melbourne, for the popular straight-to-DVD movie and the best-selling self-help book on which it is based.

Ms Byrne has been working overtime to repel the negativity emanating from a series of lawsuits over her huge money-spinning life guide.

The Secret, based on the "law of attraction", promises unlimited happiness, love, health and prosperity to those who adhere to its philosophy.

The bitter falling out with Mr Heriot being played out in the American and Australian judicial systems is the latest in a series of legal mishaps to beset Ms Byrne.

Now living in Los Angeles, the self-help guru settled out of court last year with Australian holistic healer Vanessa Bonnette, who lives near Yamba on the Far North Coast of NSW. She is also facing another two legal challenges in the US.

The lawsuit filed by Mr Heriot in the US claims he is the co-author of the screenplay and the book and is therefore entitled to up to half of what his lawyers estimate is $300 million in revenue from The Secret.

In his lawsuit, Mr Heriot says he began working in 2000 with Ms Byrne's company, Prime Time, as an editor for the candid camera-style TV show, Australia Behaving Badly.

He said Ms Byrne told him and one of her producers, Paul Harrington, in January 2005 about an idea she had for a new television series based on several "self-help" and "success" books and audio CDs she had enjoyed while on holidays.

One of the CDs was by well-known inspirational speaker Esther Hicks and two of the books were The Sci-ence Of Getting Rich by Wallace D.Wattles, and The Master Key Sys-tem by Charles F. Haanel.

Ms Byrne wanted to make a documentary-style series with various self-help teachers. Mr Heriot said the three of them decided that the series should be called The Secret, which would ultimately focus on one self-help principle known as the "law of attraction".

Mr Heriot said Ms Byrne promised that he would get a percentage of the profits from the project.

Mr Heriot's lawsuit claims that following the DVD's success Ms Byrne set out with Chicago businessman Robert Rainone to defraud him by marketing The Secret as Ms Byrne's sole creation.

All copyright in the film was transferred to Ms Byrne and Mr Rainone's company, TS Production LLC, based in Hungary.

Ms Byrne then wrote the book in August 2006, but Mr Heriot claims it was based mainly on the movie's screenplay and documents he created.

The subsequent legal battle began in July 2007, when TS Production applied for the US copyright to The Secret movie and spin-offs. Mr Heriot lodged his lawsuit the following month and TS Production then filed suit in the Federal Court in Melbourne.

TS Production has asked the Federal Court to restrain Mr Heriot from making any further claims to copyright on The Secret.

Justice Ross Sundberg has given Mr Heriot, a former Melbourne Rudolf Steiner School student now living in California, until this Friday to either file a defence to the legal action or a submission to have it dismissed.

Mr Heriot's Texas-based lawyers told The Sun-Herald he could not comment because of the pending litigation. Ms Byrne, in her lawsuit, claims Mr Heriot was a director of the film and paid by her company, Prime Time.

He was a paid employee and she created, prepared and wrote the book, she said.

Karina Carretero, a spokeswoman for TS Production LLC, said the organisation would not comment.

"It is my personal opinion that the people behind The Secret believe that by responding to it, they would be attracting more negativity," she said.

From her home near Yamba, Ms Bonnette is convinced that there is more negativity to come.

Ms Byrne had taken legal proceedings against Ms Bonnette in the Federal Court over issues of intellectual property. Ms Bonnette had claimed that Ms Byrne grabbed chunks from her own book Empowerment For The New Era without permission and had accused her rival of plagiarism.

Last week Ms Bonnette told The Sun-Herald that under the terms of the out-of-court settlement she was unable to comment on her legal battle.

Asked about the continuing legal challenges to the creator of The Secret, she replied: "I can only say it's karma. I am happy and moving forward with my life."