Former Manager Sues Hawthorne Heights

Wild Justice Records is suing Hawthorne Heights for breach of oral contract and unjust enrichment for terminating a management agreement without warning, according to a legal filing in Michigan.

The lawsuit, filed October 16th, claims Hawthorne Heights and members James Woodruff, Micah Carli, Matt Ridenour, Casey Calvert and Eron Bucciarelli-Tieger breached the agreement when they severed ties with Wild Justice in May. The company is seeking about $89,000 in unpaid fees.

The suit said the band verbally agreed to pay Wild Justice one-sixth of all revenue starting in January. Although the band members didn’t sign on the dotted line, there was no objection to any provisions in the contract, the suit said.

The management company is seeking unpaid fees for concert bookings, merchandise sales at concerts, purchase of musical instruments and other equipment, a commission on a sponsorship with Mountain Dew and a loan of $800.

Wild Justice Records President Rick Smith said that filing the lawsuit was a last resort for himself and partner Troy Hanson.

"As much as I find it distasteful to take an artist to court, and I haven’t done it in 30 years, the way this went down was hurtful and egregious and there was a lack of respect," Smith told Pollstar. "I was totally blindsided. I had just pretty much booked them for the remainder of 2007. Then they went with The Firm."

Smith explained that contrary to the norm, a verbal agreement is legally enforceable when the parties involved are working under the provisions of it, as he and Hanson did.

"We had a fully negotiated agreement that we submitted to them in early spring that no one responded to. We kept asking them when we were going to get it back," he said. "Things happened so quickly and there were opportunities we didn’t want to miss – the Warped tour, for example.

"Practically speaking, you really can’t wait to negotiate with lawyers. It can take months sometimes, even for a record deal. In this situation, we started work the minute we were told we were their managers."

Smith said the band members had contacted him about working out the details of the back pay and he’ll be glad when the issue is put to rest.

"The Firm is a very impressive outfit and I hope [Hawthorne Heights] finds what they’re looking for," he said. "It’s sad because deep down these are good guys and I believe in them. I hope it gets settled soon so we can both go on our way."

The band’s attorney, Daniel Friedman, had not responded to Pollstar’s request for comment at press time.

This isn’t the first time Hawthorne Heights have been sued for breach of contract.

Victory Records and owner Tony Brummel have been engaged in a nasty legal battle since August 2006 when the band filed a lawsuit claiming fraudulent accounting practices, among other charges.

Hawthorne Heights then released a statement titled "The REAL Manifesto" announcing the band had left Victory and detailing many of its grievances against Brummel.

Brummel in turn filed a lawsuit in November 2006 against Virgin Records and its parent, EMI Music, Virgin president Jason Flom and head of business affairs Jason Kempler, claiming Virgin executives pilfered its flagship act before the band had fulfilled its contract.

That case is still unresolved.