Why Lauren Sanchez Is Being Sued By Her Former Yoga Instructor

Lauren Sanchez‘s former yoga instructor, Alanna Zabel, has filed a suit against the ex-entertainment journalist for allegedly stealing her book idea.

This development follows Zabel’s promise to take legal action against Sanchez after she announced her children’s book titled “The Fly Who Flew to Space.”

In her filing, Alanna Zabel claimed that the book’s concept was taken from “oral and written discussions” with Lauren Sanchez regarding her own children’s book, “Dharma Kitty Goes to Mars.”

Sanchez’s former yoga instructor has followed through on her word to sue the former news anchor for allegedly stealing the concept for her new children’s book, “The Fly Who Flew to Space,” from her.

Page Six obtained Zabel’s filing, in which the wellness coach claimed she had “oral and written discussions spanning sixteen years” with Sanchez. During these discussions, she shared several ideas with the philanthropist that appear to have found their way into the children’s book.

It was also mentioned that in 2022, Zabel shared a “specific” concept about a “cat who flies to Mars” with Sanchez for her own book project, “Dharma Kitty Goes to Mars.”

Zabel had hoped to collaborate with Sanchez and her fiancé, Jeff Bezos, to publish the book and intended to donate the “proceeds of sales” to the “Bezos Earth Fund and Bezos Academy.”

To achieve this goal, she emailed Bezos and allegedly received reassurance from his personal assistant that the billionaire mogul had seen her message. However, it is unclear whether Bezos ultimately offered her an audience to pitch to him.

Zabel, who claimed she taught Sánchez privately from 2007 to 2011, filed the suit without an attorney.

She argued that the ex-entertainment reporter’s actions caused her “emotional distress” and deemed them “extreme and outrageous.”

She also claimed that they were “carried out with the intent to harm” her and were “driven by personal jealousy and a personal desire to posture publicly as ‘philanthropic and caring.'”

The Yogi added, “In a nutshell, [Sanchez] has always demonstrated a desire to appear like [Zabel], an authentic, independent, free-spirited, hard working and public service oriented yoga instructor.”

The suit comes months after Zabel issued a cease-and-desist letter to Sanchez following the latter’s announcement of her children’s book.

At the time, she told the Daily Mail that she was “deeply offended” by Sanchez’s new book and promised legal action.

She also shared insight into her time working with Sanzchez, revealing that she had often given the latter gifts, including copies of her other books, clothing, and other products from her brand, AZ I AM.

According to the yoga instructor, they did have a falling out in 2009 after she could no longer cope with Sanchez’s love for “gossiping” and sharing “inappropriate details” about her friends’ personal lives.

She continued, “I ended up quitting working for her shortly after her 40th birthday party because I just couldn’t handle her personality anymore.”

“It was just really hard for me to live a spiritual life while being around her because she’s just a really toxic person.'”

Amid the drama, Sanchez’s book debuted on the shelves earlier in the month. An ecstatic Sanchez took to Instagram to share a clip of herself going to the Barnes & Noble bookstore to pick up a copy of her book.

In the clip, Sanchez, who came in company with some other people, can be seen climbing an escalator to the section where her book is stored and excitedly picking it up after she locates it. She also took time to autograph the piece before placing it back on the bookshelf in an easy way for readers to find it.

Sanchez captioned the video, “So, I took a little walk to the bookstore,” adding a wink and spaceship emoji.

Meanwhile, Sanchez has yet to issue a response to Zabel’s suit but would most likely hire lawyers to defend herself as the case progresses.

In a recent chat with People Magazine, Sanchez opened up about her low-key and cozy life with her fiancé, emphasizing how they cherish their quiet evenings together.

“My favorite time is when the house is calm and quiet, and Jeff and I are deciding what show we’re going to binge that night,” she said.

The Emmy-winning former news anchor admitted that they sometimes find themselves at an impasse over what to watch, saying: “It takes a little bit of time to decide. You can imagine our tastes are a little different. But I love our TV time; we just have the best time.”

She continued, “We recently saw ‘Baby Reindeer,’ which of course everyone saw. ‘Fallout’ was also so good. We also just finished Presumed Innocent, which was incredible,” adding, “Oh, and we loved ‘Severance.'”