Seventh-Inning Stretch · The Paper Chase
The Endorsement Promise
Speakers of Sport, Inc. v. ProServ, Inc. (1999)
Charge: Tortious interference - rival agency lured away a star catcher with promises of endorsements (suit against the rival agency)Court: U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh CircuitDocket: The Paper Chase
Is luring away an agent's client with an unfulfilled promise of endorsement money unlawful interference?
The facts
A sports agency represented an All-Star catcher. A rival agency recruited him by promising $2 million to $4 million in endorsement deals, and he switched agents. The endorsements largely never came, and he later moved on to yet another agent. The first agency sued the rival, calling its promise a fraud used to steal a client.
You have the facts the court had. Guilty or not guilty? Call it in the game with your friends, then see what the court actually decided. Wrong call, you drink.
Citation: Speakers of Sport, Inc. v. ProServ, Inc., 178 F.3d 862 (7th Cir. 1999)
Read more at openjurist.org. The source reveals the outcome.