Mariah Carey versus the Jacksons in NSW court
Did you hear the one about the sold-out Mariah Carey concert on her Australian tour that almost fell over when the budget fell short of the productions' expenses and a well-known promoter tried to funnel the money from The Jacksons' tour to pay for it? It ended up being fought out in the NSW Supreme Court. And it goes like this.
Carey played a show at the Gold Coast Convention Centre with Jessica Mauboy on January 1, 2013. The singer's Australian tour was co-ordinated by Jupiters Casino. In charge of producing the Gold Coast gig was well-known concert man John Denison.
By December 2012, the show had sold out. But a spanner hit the works when Denison told Jupiters his company, UAE Presents, did not have "sufficient funds" to pay for "all equipment and materials required for the concert", the NSW Supreme Court heard.
Facing the prospect Carey's show might be cancelled, Jupiters agreed on Christmas Eve to cover the shortfall. This left Denison to pay back Jupiters. Three months earlier, Denison had been "engaged" by concert promoter Ruchitha Perera to manage the Australian tour of The Jackson Five.
Denison told Jupiters part of the ticket sales from The Jacksons' Perth, Brisbane and Wollongong shows would go to the casino to cover the debt. But Perera cut off the transaction and said Denison had no authority to take the money. Jupiters still wanted its money and sued.
Perera decided to fight the matter and hired Emprise Legal. Justice James Stephenson found Jupiters was entitled to the money from the Jacksons' Perth show, but not from Brisbane or Wollongong. That decision was overturned in the NSW Court of Appeal on Thursday. The three-judge panel found Denison had no right to deal with the proceeds of The Jacksons' concerts as Perera hadn't given him permission to shuffle the finances.
John McIntosh from Emprise Legal said: "It's a great victory for the little guy." (Daily Telegraph)
|
