Some of New York's top modeling agencies are named in a multimillion-dollar lawsuit that alleges they've used shady accounting practices to hold onto money they should have paid their models.

A group of models claiming that Ford, Wilhelmina, Elite, and Women, among others — as well as brands like L'Oréal, Aveda, and Revlon — have withheld hefty portions of their royalties. Louisa Raske, a model who appeared on the May/June 2005 cover of Brides, at left, is leading the class action suit and seeks $20 million in damages. Her 19-page summons claims that these agencies commonly work on the models' behalf without the models knowing it, and arrange deals "as if the modeling agencies had contacted the models and had the legal authority to execute the documents."

The suit goes on to say that "since the models are unaware of the extended/expanded usages for which the modeling agencies have negotiated and received payment on their behalf . . . the models never demand or receive payment, and at the very least, the modeling agencies are unjustly enriched by the models' funds."

Raske's suit also claims that in a similar case decided in 2005, some models were told they would "never again model in New York" if they sued their agencies. The models in that case won a $22 million settlement.

Representatives for Ford and Wilhelmina did not respond to requests for comment on this post. But Susan Scafidi, founder of the Fashion Law Institute at Fordham University and a board member of the Model Alliance, told us that model payment has been an issue for quite some time.

"Models have repeatedly expressed concern about lack of transparency in agency accounting practices," Scafidi said in an email. "While some agencies are more conscientious and professional than others, a lawsuit was perhaps inevitable — though the scale of this one is quite dramatic."

A full list of the defendants in this case can be found below.

Modeling Agencies:

• Next Management LLC
• Wilhelmina Models Inc.
• Wilhelmina International Ltd.
• Ford Models Inc.
• Elite Model Management — New York LLC
• DNA Model Management LLC
• IMG Models Inc.
• Trump Model Management LLC
• MC2 dba aka Karin Models of New York LLC
• Major Model Management Inc.
• Silent Models LLC
• Fusion Model Management Inc.
• Marilyn Model Management Inc.
• 1 Management LLC
• Red Model Management Inc.
• Request Model Management Inc.
• Supreme Model Management LLC
• VNY Model Management Inc.
• Men Women NY Model Management Inc.
• APM Models Inc.
• Q Model Management dba aka New York Model Management Inc.
• Click Model Management Inc.
• S Model Management LLC
• Elite Model Management Corporation
• NYC Management Group Inc.

Advertising Agencies:

• McCann-Erickson USA Inc.
• McCann-Erickson Corporation
• Ogilvy + Mather Partners Inc.
• Publicis Inc.
• JWT LLC
• Laird + Partners New York LLC
• Leo Burnett Company Inc.
• Saatchi + Saatchi North America Inc.
• Kirshenbaum Bond & Partners Inc.

Beauty Brands:

• L'Oréal USA Inc.
• Revlon Inc.
• Garnier LLC
• Coty Inc.
• Aveda Corporation
• Sephora USA Inc.
• Maybelline LLC.

Sally Singer, who left her job as editor of T Magazine in September, has been named the digital creative director of Vogue. She'll head back to 4 Times Square to take the newly created position on Oct. 29. Singer, who had been the features director and fashion news editor at Vogue before she took over T Magazine in 2010, will report to Anna Wintour and will work closely with Vogue.com Editor Caroline Palmer.

Those stories and more in today's news roundup.

• Christian Louboutin has given Martha Stewart permission to paint the iconic red soles of his shoes black. "I don't like them red, even though they're his trademark," she said. "But he doesn't mind. He said it's okay if I do that — I asked him!" [InStyle]
  

• Victoria Beckham shared two images from her recent Elle France cover shoot, which Karl Lagerfeld shot at the Chanel store on Paris's Rue Cambon. Beckham called the shoot "a dream come true!" [@VictoriaBeckham]
  

• London's Design Museum will exhibit a retrospective of Paul Smith's work next Fall, examining everything from the clothing he designs to the stores he's designed around the world. [WWD]
  

• French artist Fabrice Hyber's sculpture "1M3 de beaute" (translation: one cubic meter of beauty) is a cube of Yves Saint Laurent Rouge Pur Couture number one lipstick that weighs about 330 pounds. The sculpture will be on display in Paris's Palais de Tokyo until Jan. 7. [Fashion Etc.]
  

• Meanwhile, British artists Mariana Fantich and Dominic Young took a pair of size 15 men's shoes from Savile Row by Barker and replaced the soles with 1,050 fake teeth. They call the resulting one-offs, which weren't meant to be worn, the Apex Predator. [Art Info]
  

• Because hair stylists weren't already specialized enough, a Los Angeles salon called the Private Room now has a station devoted exclusively to cutting bangs. For $20, customers can choose from bangs shaped like celebrities' from Katie Holmes to Rose Byrne. [The Cut]

Source: Twitter User VictoriaBeckham

Harper's Bazaar Executive Editor Kristina O'Neill has been named editor of WSJ Magazine. She'll report to Ruth Altchek, the newly named editorial director of both the magazine and The Wall Street Journal's Off Duty section. Altchek had been former WSJ Magazine Editor Deborah Needleman's deputy during her tenure at the Journal. The news comes in the wake of the much-publicized departure of Needleman to T Magazine.

"I am absolutely thrilled to be joining The Wall Street Journal, with its incredible reputation and reach," O'Neill said in a statement. "WSJ Magazine is on a roll, and I can't wait to pick up the momentum and create content that further drives the conversation."

A representative for the Journal told us that the magazine currently produces 10 issues a year, but O'Neill will increase publication to 11 issues in 2013 and 12 issues in 2014.

O'Neill had been at Harper's Bazaar since 2000, but before that she held positions at New York Magazine and Time Out New York.

Meanwhile, The New York Times announced today that T Magazine's publication under Needleman will scale down to 13 issues year from 15, and that every issue will include design content on top of stories about fashion, art, and travel.

"By covering the breadth of style subjects in every issue, and publishing on a more regular schedule, our aim is to serve our readers better and create a deeper connection to the magazine," Needleman said.
Above, Kristina O'Neill

Agyness Deyn's appearance on the Summer cover of i-D magazine may have been the last job of her modeling career. Deyn, who's now pursuing a career in acting, said in a recent interview that she's "stopped modelling officially."

Deyn told The Independent, "I've not done any for a good long while now. I think it was about four years ago when my feelings were changing towards the industry. I didn't hate it, but I was yearning to do something different. I was on a gradient. It was a gradual thing."

Deyn has a supporting role in the upcoming film Pusher, which premieres next month, but she first started appearing in films in 2010. That year, she starred in the short Mean to Me and played the role of Aphrodite in Clash of the Titans.

Still, Deyn's drift from modeling into acting doesn't mean she didn't like walking down runways and appearing in ad campaigns.

"Oh god, I loved it," she said. "Being 18 years old, from Manchester, and suddenly having this new world to explore — being able to travel, meet all these different people, and immerse myself in all these different cultures — was just so much fun."

A look at all the fun Deyn has been having in her new career as an actor, here.

Photo courtesy of i-D magazine.

Those stories and more in our daily news roundup.

• Who's laughing now? Rachel Zoe and her husband, Rodger Berman, have signed on as executive producers of an NBC fictional comedy show based on Zoe's life. The show has not yet been named and its debut date is unknown, but it's scheduled to air during prime time. [Deadline]
  

• The 20th season of Tyra Banks's show America's Next Top Model will include something the previous 19 never had: male contestants. [The Cut]
  

• Levi's has unveiled a line of denim that includes recycled materials from soda bottles and food trays. The Waste Less jeans will be available in stores and online in January 2013. [WWD]
  

• In the first episode of MTV's recently revamped show House of Style, Karlie Kloss and Joan Smalls take viewers on a behind-the-scenes look at what models do during Paris Fashion Week. [MTV Style]
  

• If you're the owner of a Mulberry sweater, you have one of the charming women in this video to thank. [Racked]