Business and Finance

Yet another claim is being made in court about how Facebook Inc. founder Mark Zuckerberg started the company, this time by a New York man who says he is owed 84 percent ownership of the company.

Paul Ceglia says in his lawsuit in an Allegheny County court that he has a signed contract with Zuckerberg in 2003 to design and develop thefacebook.com.

Ceglia said he was owed a $1,000 fee and ownership of 50 percent of Facebook, plus 1 percent for each day beyond the original terms until the site was finished, adding up to an 84 percent stake.

The judge in the case has put a temporary restraining order on Zuckerberg and Facebook, preventing the Palo Alto social networking company from transferring any of its assets online payday loans.

Facebook has denied the charges made by Ceglia and is attempting to move the case to a federal court.

Ceglia was sued last year by New York Attorney Gen. Andrew Cuomo for allegedly taking $200,000-worth in pre-orders for wood pellets and then failing to deliver them.

His lawsuit follows a more celebrated case involving ownership claims made by Zuckerberg's Harvard University classmates, the subject of a movie due for release this fall.

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