A new lawsuit, this time in federal court, has been filed by artist Tony Moore against Robert Kirkman over rights to The Walking Dead.  The suit seeks a declaratory judgment that Moore is a co-author of The Walking Dead as well as Battle Pope, Brit, Dead Planet, and My Name Is Abraham. 

This opens a new front in the increasingly bitter dispute over one of the richest properties in comics.  Moore calls Kirkman "a proud liar and fraudster" in the new suit, the complaint for which appears on Bleeding Cool. 

The state suit alleged that Moore had been duped into signing away his rights (see "Kirkman Sued By Longtime Collaborator").  Kirkman responded that Moore had legal counsel at the time, and that he continued to be paid royalties (see "Kirkman Responds to Suit"). 

The federal case allows arguments on questions of copyright law, while the state suit is limited to the contract dispute.