Term Paper on "Dave Chappelle Is Being Sued by His Manager for Breach of Contract"

Quoted Instructions for "Dave Chappelle Is Being Sued by His Manager for Breach of Contract" Assignment:

Introduction to the Law and Contracts

As reported in The Smoking Gun, a Dave Chappelle is being sued by his Manager for Breach of Contract

Please read about the elements that make a contract valid. There are three elements relating to the formation of the contract that must be present for the contract to be valid (and enforceable) and three elements relating to performance that attest to whether the terms of the contract have been met. Your job will be to see which, if any, of the elements form the basis of the lawsuit.

So, what happened?

Lawsuit claims comedian welshed on Comedy Central, other deals - Click >here< to see the lawsuit in its entirety. http://www.thesmokinggun.com/archive/1213052dave1.html

DECEMBER 13 2005--Claiming that Dave Chappelle has stiffed him for at least $864,500, the comedian's former personal manager has sued the star, opening a window on the performer's finances and his lucrative Comedy Central deal. In a breach of contract complaint filed yesterday in U.S. District Court in Manhattan, Mustafa Abuelhija claims that he and Chappelle last September entered into a management agreement, though the deal "was never reduced to writing." In late-June, upon his return from an abrupt and mysterious South African sojourn, the 32-year-old Chappelle fired Abuelhija during a meeting at a San Francisco hotel, according to the lawsuit, an excerpt of which you'll find below. During his 10 months as Chappelle's manager, Abuelhija contends that he played a crucial role in deals that earned the comedian about $10 million (and which potentially could earn Chappelle tens of millions more). Abuelhija, who began working as Chappelle's "jack-of-all-trades" in 2001, claims that he is owed a piece of the performer's "Chappelle's Show" deal with Comedy Central as well as a chunk of revenues generated by personal appearances, a future DVD, and the Michel Gondry-directed movie "Dave Chappelle's Block Party." When Chappelle re-upped with Comedy Central last year, press reports valued the agreement at $50 million, a deal that was largely torpedoed when the comedian abandoned the show this year after filming only a few episodes of its third season. According to Abuelhija, the cable network gave Chappelle a $4.5 million "nonrefundable up-front payment" when the deal was signed and agreed to pay him $275,000 per episode and about $25,000 per repeat (the deal covered 13-episode seasons in 2005 and 2006). The contract, Abuelhija noted, also guaranteed the star 50 percent royalties on "Chappelle's Show" DVD and merchandise sales retroactive to the show's first season. The DVD deal is particularly lucrative since Chappelle's program is among the best-selling television DVDs, with its second season compilation having set a record this June with the sale of 1.2 million units during its first week in stores.

The major issue in the case is whether Abuelhiga's contract was valid, whether Chappelle breached that contract, and the remedy that will judged to be fair if the contract was breached.

In effect, you have to build your case based on the following three questions:

(1) Was the contract valid?

(2) Did Chappelle breach the contract? Yes or No? Defend your position?

(3) What remedy is Abuelhiha seeking?

As you build your case (your defense of your position on the first two issues) make sure that you answer the following questions:

1. What were the elements in the contract that specify what each party was to do?

2. What were the elements of the contract that specify what would be consequences for the parties if they fail to perform?

3. Was a party in breach? Why? Or why not?

4. What type of damages are being or can be sought?

5. Was the performance of any party excused because the other party breached the contract? Why? Or why not?

To learn more about what took place and the summary judgment, you might want to run a google search using the key words [Mustafa Abuelhija Dave Chappelle],