Michael Coppel Promotions v. Bolton
United States District Court for the Southern District of New York
982 F. Supp. 950 (1997)
- Written by Kyli Cotten, JD
Facts
Michael Coppel Promotions Pty. Limited (MCP) (plaintiff) was a company that marketed and promoted concerts. In March 1996, MCP entered an oral contract with singer Michael Bolton (defendant) to perform eight concerts across Australia in exchange for the greater of either $1.2 million or 85 percent of the net door receipts of ticket sales. Based on said agreement, MCP began promoting six of the eight concerts. Over the course of several weeks, MCP and Bolton’s team exchanged faxes solidifying the terms of the oral agreement. Bolton’s team sent over a fax with the concert agreement, to which MCP responded stating that generally the terms accurately reflected the agreement but that certain issues regarding payment of the advance conflicted with those previously discussed. Ultimately, Bolton canceled the tour, citing low ticket sales. MCP filed suit for breach of contract to recover for money spent promoting the tour. Bolton filed a motion to dismiss for failure to state a claim, arguing that there was not a valid oral contract and, if there were, the fax exchanges constituted counteroffers extinguishing the prior oral contract entered.
Rule of Law
Issue
Holding and Reasoning (Chin, J.)
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