Event Entertainment Group, Ultra Music Festival‘s parent company, has filed a lawsuit against staging company AG Production Services for allegedly withholding a deposit of nearly $800,000. Event Entertainment Group is reported to have paid the sum at the time of contractual signing with AG Production Services. The agreement, which required a deposit totaling more than $1.5 million for the development and oversight of lighting, video, and stages, guaranteed AG Production Services’ expertise for the 2020 installment of Ultra Music Festival’s flagship event, Ultra Miami. The remainder of the deposit was payable at the time of the festival, originally scheduled for March 20–22, and thereafter.
Following Ultra Miami 2020’s cancellation due to COVID-19 health concerns, festival organizers are said to have sent AG Production Services a letter requesting a refund of the deposit due to a “force majeure” provision in the contract. In legal terms, a force majeure is defined as “unforeseeable circumstances that prevent someone from fulfilling a contract,” and can be viewed as an “act of God” that excuses parties from contractural obligations due to events beyond their control.
Upon arguing that the COVID-19 pandemic represented a force majeure, Ultra Music Festival reportedly received a response from AG Production Services stating that the company had already spent the deposit on hotel and travel costs, rental equipment, trucking, and payroll, all of which AG allegedly claimed to have been in relation to the job commissioned by the festival brand. Ultra Music Festival officials have since contested the hotel, travel, and trucking expenses on the grounds that AG’s staff never did in fact travel to Miami.
The circumstances prompted Event Entertainment Group to file a lawsuit against AG alleging breach of contract and unjust enrichment. Event Entertainment Group is being represented by Morgan & Morgan.
Via: Miami-Dade County Clerk of the Courts
Featured image: Alive Coverage
