Frasier has won more than 20 Emmys

Grammer is one of the highest paid television actors in the United States.

He changed the terms of his contract with the agency in 1995 after the firm failed to win him any movie deals.

The new terms tied Grammer to his television obligations with the agency for another two years, but left him free to negotiate his own motion picture contracts.

Contract challenged

In 1996 the star left Artists and challenged the revised contract, claiming that it breached collective bargaining agreements with the Screen Actors Guild.

But a SAG arbitration panel later concluded that the deal was valid.

A federal judge upheld that ruling, and ordered the actor to pay Artists more than $2m in unpaid commissions.

The 9th Circuit's three-judge panel agreed with the judgement and upheld the lower court's ruling.

Frasier is one of the most popular and critically-acclaimed sitcoms in recent times, a spin-off from comedy series Cheers.

It stars Grammer as a radio psychiatrist forever tormented by his own neuroses.

The programme has won more than 20 Emmy awards, becoming the first TV series in history to win five consecutive Emmys in its main category.