Actress Halle Berry has put a stop to a Canadian auction which was touted as a sale of her personal items.

An attorney for the X-Men star fired off a cease-and-desist letter to bosses at The Montreal Auction House over the weekend, notifying them Berry had never owned or used any of the 400 belongings going under the hammer - including a hairbrush, nail clipper and antique sofa.

The sale had been billed as an auction of Berry's property but executives have promptly backtracked, explaining the collection actually belonged to the Oscar winner's former partner Gabriel Aubry, the father of her daughter Nahla.

A statement reads, "No items were used by her (Berry), nor were any items provided by her or any agent of hers for the auction. We apologise to her, and to the public, for the error. All goods were and are the property of Mr. Gabriel Aubry only."