Boy Blue, Inc. v. Brown

74 Va. Cir. 4, 2007 Va. Cir. LEXIS 165
CourtEssex County Circuit Court
DecidedFebruary 13, 2007
DocketCase No. CL 005000076
StatusPublished

This text of 74 Va. Cir. 4 (Boy Blue, Inc. v. Brown) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Essex County Circuit Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Boy Blue, Inc. v. Brown, 74 Va. Cir. 4, 2007 Va. Cir. LEXIS 165 (Va. Super. Ct. 2007).

Opinion

By Judge Harry t. Taliaferro, III

Defendants Christopher Brown and Joyce Hawkins demur to Counts I through VIII of plaintiffs Motion for Judgment (“MFJ”). Three other defendants Zomba Recording, L.L.C., Zomba Enterprises, Inc., and Zomba US Holdings, Inc., were nonsuited by order entered April 18,2006. There are two Count Ilfs in the MFJ and no Count II. For the sake of clarity and brevity the first Count III will be referred to herein as Count II.

[5]*5 Demurrer

Upon consideration of a demurrer, the Court accepts all facts alleged in or reasonably inferable from the plaintiff s pleading to be true. The Court does not evaluate and decide the merits of a claim, it only tests the sufficiency of factual allegations to determine whether the plaintiffs pleadings state a cause of action. West Alexandria Properties, Inc. v. First Va. Mtg. & Real Estate Inv. Trust, 221 Va. 134, 267 S.E.2d 149 (1980); Board of Supvrs. v. Southland Corp., 224 Va. 514, 297 S.E.2d 718 (1982). The documents attached to the motion for judgment as exhibits are part of plaintiff s pleadings to be considered in the motion before the Court. Rule 1:4(i). All demurrers shall state specifically the grounds on which the demurrant concludes that the pleading is insufficient at law. No grounds other than those stated specifically in the demurrer shall be considered by the court. Va. Code § 8.01 -273. In this hearing, the Court considers only the grounds specifically stated in the Demurrer and defendants’ Memorandum of Law in Support of then Demurrer (“the Memo” or “Memo”).

Allegations in Plaintiffs Motion for Judgment

Boy Blue, Inc. (“Boy Blue”) is a business which represents performing artists in the entertainment field. (MFJ ¶ 7.) On March 11, 2002, Hawkins, individually and as mother and legal guardian of Brown, entered into a Fee Assignment Agreement (“FA”) with Boy Blue. (MFJ ¶¶ 8 and 35; Exhibit A.) Under the FA, Hawkins agreed during Brown’s minority to relinquish all of Brown’s earnings to Boy Blue, to pay all of Boy Blue’s fees, costs, and expenses and not to interfere with the rights of Boy Blue and gave Boy Blue power of attorney to direct the financial and professional affairs of Brown all as provided under a separate Management Agreement. (MFJ ¶ ¶ 8, 9, 10, 11, and 12; Exhibit A.) On March 12, 2002, Brown and Hawkins entered into an Exclusive Artist Management Agreement (“the MA”) with Boy Blue Productions. (MFJ ¶ 14; Exhibit B.) The parties agreed that Boy Blue would be paid compensation based on Brown’s “gross income,” but the MA inadvertently omitted the “percentage term” of such compensation. (MFJ ¶ 15.) The MA provided for an initial and four automatic renewal terms of one year each. (MFJ ¶ 16.) From May to August, 2002, Boy Blue provided services under the MA which Brown and Hawkins accepted and from which they benefited. (MFJ ¶ 18.) Boy Blue alleges in Count V that it provided services and incurred costs on defendant’s behalf from March 2002 to November 2003. (MFJ ¶¶ 69 and 70.) In September 2002, Boy Blue [6]*6experienced difficulty contacting the defendants who subsequently advised Boy Blue that Brown was uncertain about pursuing his career as a performing artist. (MFJ ¶ ¶ 19 and 20.) Thereafter, Brown and Hawkins together actively sought representation by other agents without consulting Boy Blue. (MFJ ¶ ¶ 23,24, and 25.) The defendants signed with another company and, by written notice, Brown disaffirmed the MA effective as of December 1, 2004. (MFJ ¶¶ 26, 27, 28, 29, and 30.) In the summer of 2005, Boy Blue learned of Brown’s new contract and of the defendants’ negotiations with other companies. (MFJ ¶ 31.) Brown and Hawkins have paid no compensation to Boy Blue in any amount. (MFJ ¶ 32.)

Boy Blue‘s Claims

The eight counts of Boy Blue’s MFJ seek compensatory and punitive damages together with reasonable attorney’s fees, interest, and costs from either Brown or Hawkins or both for Breach of Express Contract (Counts I, II, and IV), Breach of Implied Contract (Counts III and V), Quantum Meruit (Count VI), Conspiracy to Injure Trade, Business, or Profession (Count VII), Tortious Interference with Contract (Count VIII).

Grounds of Demurrer

Defendants seek dismissal of Counts I, II, IV, VII, and VIII of the MFJ on the grounds that the FA and MA lack any definite compensation term, the MA constitutes a contract of adhesion, and Brown as a minor lacked the capacity to execute the MA. Defendants further seek dismissal of Counts III, V, and VI for failure to specifically allege services for which plaintiff seeks compensation and of Count VDI for failure to allege illegal or improper conduct and because Brown cannot tortiously interfere with his own agent, namely Hawkins, who acted as such in entering into the FA.

Analysis

A. Demurrer to All Counts Alleging Breach of Express Contract or Which Rely upon There Being an Express Contract (Counts I, II, TV, VII, VIII)

1. Lack of a Definite Compensation Term

(a) Applicability of Parol Evidence Rule

[7]*7A contract with an incomplete, uncertain, or indefinite material term will not be enforced. The compensation or price to be paid is a material term which must be either explicitly stated or some provision in the contract must contain a sufficiently specific method for determining the amount. See Mullins v. Mingo Lime & Lumber, 176 Va. 44, 10 S.E.2d 492 (1940); Parker v. Murphy, 152 Va. 173, 183, 146 S.E. 254, 257 (1929); Premier Signatures International, Inc. v. Feld Entertainment Productions, Inc., 1999 U.S. App. (4th Cir.) LEXIS 14028.

The MA1 in Paragraph 4, Compensation, states as follows:

In consideration of Company entering into this Agreement, and as compensation for the services to be rendered to me by Company hereunder, I agree to compensate Company, as and when received by me or applied to my behalf, a sum equal to [ blank ] of all and any “gross compensation” which I may receive....

Boy Blue alleges that an agreed upon “percentage term” was inadvertently omitted from the above paragraph and argues that such term can be proved by testimony at trial. Defendants’ contend such testimony is barred by the parol evidence rule.

The parol evidence rule bars the use of prior or contemporaneous oral negotiations or stipulations to alter, vary, contradict, add to, or explain the terms of a complete, unambiguous, unconditional written agreement. See Walker & Laberge Co. v. First Nat’l Bank of Boston, 206 Va. 683, 146 S.E.2d 239 (1966). Such an agreement is considered to be the complete or integrated understanding of the parties, and it is deemed “that the writing contains the whole contract and is the sole evidence of the agreement.” Durham v. National Pool Equip. Co., 205 Va. 441, 446, 138 S.E.2d 55, 59 (1964).

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74 Va. Cir. 4, 2007 Va. Cir. LEXIS 165, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/boy-blue-inc-v-brown-vaccessex-2007.