AceShowbiz -

"Desperate Housewives" star Marcia Cross is taking legal action to prevent nude photographs of her from being published. The over than 200 personal photos of the actress were found by a firm hired to remove garbage from her Los Angeles home and now the firm trying to sell them to the highest bidder.

Lawyers for Cross claim the photos, accidentally disposed by the actress, are the copyrighted property of Cross and her husband, Tom Mahoney, no matter where they were discovered and thus look forward to get them back. However, Phoenix-based agent David Hans Schmidt, who was hired to represent the removal firm, insisted that Cross gave up her ownership rights when she tossed the photos in the trash.

"The pictures were not stolen. When you throw something away, you forfeit that property. We recognize the copyright issue, but US copyright law stops at the border. I'm not looking to mortify Ms. Cross, I just want the most money for my client," Schmidt explained.

As a way out, Schmidt is offering Cross the chance to buy back her photos. Let's just see what the future brings for both sides.