Professor Victoria Schwartz Quoted in "Appeals Court Holds Musicians Don't Have to Return Deposits for COVID-Canceled LA Music Festival" -- CEB Daily News

Professor Victoria L. Schwartz is quoted in the CEB Daily News article, "In Rare Win for Performers, Appeals Court Holds Musicians Don't Have to Return Deposits for COVID-Canceled LA Music Festival."  The article examines the victory for artists in litigation over cancellations of events due to the pandemic when California’s Second District Court of Appeal affirmed a Los Angeles trial court’s ruling that three musicians did not have to return deposits after the inaugural Virgin Music Fest was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Excerpts from "In Rare Win for Performers, Appeals Court Holds Musicians Don't Have to Return Deposits for COVID-Canceled LA Music Festival"

”This was not a standard contract provision,” said Victoria Schwartz, law professor at Pepperdine University Caruso School of Law. “The musicians who were going to perform had quite a bit of clout, and therefore had bargaining power. The standard language was initially proposed, but the artist’s representatives pushed back and negotiated a provision that was much more talent-friendly.”

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”It all comes down to what’s a covered loss, and what’s not,” Schwartz said. “The most famous example of who did recover is Wimbledon, who had insurance who did cover for cancellations from acts of God, etc. A lot of people were upset because they felt Wimbledon did shut down earlier, because they knew they’d get the money from insurance companies. But hindsight is very smart… in many cases, the languages read to exclude covid.”

The complete article may be found at CEB Daily News (registration required)