Canelo sues DAZN and Golden Boy

[EBK String]

Canelo Sues DAZN, Golden Boy, De La Hoya For Breach of Contract
By Dan Rafael
Published On Wed Sep 9, 2020, 12:49 AM EST

Middleweight world champion Canelo Alvarez, stymied by his inability to get a fight lined up due to contractual issues with his promoter and broadcast partner, is taking his fight outside the boxing ring.

Alvarez, boxing’s biggest star, on Tuesday sued promoter Golden Boy Promotions, its owner/CEO/chairman Oscar De La Hoya, and broadcast partner DAZN in United States federal court for the Central District of California, claiming damages of at least $280 million.

In the 24-page lawsuit, a copy of which was obtained by BoxingScene.com, Mexico’s Alvarez is suing for, among other reasons, breach of contract, intentional interference with a contract, negligent interference with a contract, fraud and breach of fiduciary duty related to the five-year, 11-fight deal worth a then-athlete record $365 million Alvarez signed with streaming service DAZN in the early morning hours of Oct. 17, 2018.

Under that deal, Alvarez was due to fight twice per year, on the Mexican holiday weekends in May and September, for $35 million minimum guarantees from the $40 million DAZN would pay Golden Boy for each fight, other than the first bout of the deal against Rocky Fielding in December 2018 for which Alvarez received $15 million.

“Despite Alvarez’ successes, both DAZN and Golden Boy have broken the promises they made to each other, Alvarez, and boxing fans,” the lawsuit said. “In doing so Defendants have breached their respective contracts and caused Alvarez damages of -- at least -- $280 million.”

Besides the damages Alvarez alleges, he is also seeking punitive damages, attorneys’ fees, costs of the suit and “a judicial determination that he is eligible to participate in bouts arranged and promoted by entities other than Golden Boy Promotions and broadcast by entities other than DAZN.”

Under the deal with DAZN, the 30-year-old Alvarez (53-1-2, 36 KOs) has defeated Fielding to win a secondary super middleweight title, returned to middleweight to outpoint Daniel Jacobs to unify 160-pound belts and then moved up two divisions and knocked out Sergey Kovalev in the 11th round of his most recent fight last November to win a light heavyweight world title.

Since then, between the coronavirus pandemic and issues coming to agreement on an opponent for a fight penciled in for this fall, Alvarez has no fight lined up and he is not happy about it.

“I’m the pound-for-pound No. 1 in the world. I’m not scared of any opponent in the ring, and I’m not going to let failures of my broadcaster or promoters keep me out of the ring,” Alvarez said in a statement to BoxingScene. “I filed the lawsuit so I can get back to boxing and give my fans the show they deserve.”



DAZN has wanted Alvarez to fight fellow middleweight star Gennadiy Golovkin, whom it also has under contract, for a third time after their two mega-pay-per-view fights ended in a draw and a disputed Alvarez majority decision win. The trilogy match looms as one of boxing’s biggest fights and DAZN had hoped to have it last year rather than the Kovalev fight.

Earlier this year, according to sources, the sides made a deal for the bout to take place this month, following Alvarez facing super middleweight titlist Billy Saunders this past May and Golovkin facing his mandatory middleweight challenger Kamil Szeremeta in the spring.

But when the coronavirus pandemic shut the sports world down neither fight was formally announced and there was no boxing for several months.

With the sport returning in June, discussions had already begun for Alvarez’s next fight but DAZN, according to sources, wanted to cut Alvarez’s money from $35 million to less than half for him to fight either of the non-Golovkin opponents it approved: super middleweight titleholders Saunders and Callum Smith.

According to the suit, “Despite repeated promises that an alternative offer was imminent, DAZN failed to make a proposal to either Golden Boy Promotions or Alvarez for several months. When Golden Boy Promotions and Alvarez proposed opponents, DAZN refused to confirm that it was prepared to broadcast Alvarez’ September 2020 bout or that it would pay the contracted $40 million license fee.

“On June 24, 2020 – approximately 10 weeks before Alvarez’ expected September bout, date and the time when Alvarez would need to begin training camp for a bout in mid-September 2020 – Alvarez’ counsel wrote to Golden Boy Promotions and DAZN to confirm that Alvarez was prepared to face multiple potential world-class opponents, but that DAZN and Golden Boy Promotions needed to affirm their commitments so that the bout could be finalized, promoted, and his training could commence.”

According to the suit, DAZN said it would not pay the required license fee, and provided “a series of excuses, including, but not limited to, the fact that Alvarez had not fought Mr. Golovkin in 2019 and that Golden Boy Promotions had not put forth a plan for a second Alvarez fight in 2020.”

Multiple sources told BoxingScene that Alvarez agreed to take less than his guarantee but not as much as DAZN wanted to reduce it to. Alvarez, who is willing to box without a crowd, was also looking at less revenue on top of a reduced license fee because he would lose out on his share of the live gate because no fans are allowed to attend fights yet due to the coronavirus.

The lawsuit said that DAZN did try to cut the license fee.




Come to PBC pleighboi

 

[OfTheCross]

 

[patscorpio]

Canelo Lawsuit Versus Golden Boy Promotions DAZN Dismissed in Current Form; Has Deadline To Amend
By Jake Donovan

Published On Sat Sep 12, 2020, 03:15 AM EST

Saul ‘Canelo’ Alvarez has his work cut out for him in the courtroom.

The first round of Alvarez’s recently filed lawsuit against Golden Boy Promotions, company founder and chairman Oscar de la Hoya and sports streaming service DAZN was dismissed by the U.S. District Court in the Central District of California on Friday. The case was rejected on the grounds in which Alvarez’s attorneys named the multiple defendants.

As plaintiff, Alvarez (52-1-2, 36KOs) named DAZN North America, Inc., DAZN Media Inc., DAZN US LLC., Perform Investment Limited, Golden Boy Promotions LLC, Golden Boy Promotions Inc. and de la Hoya as defendants in the lawsuit where the Mexican icon seeks damages in excess of $280 million. In naming said parties, the burden of proof resides with the plaintiff to properly identify where said companies conduct their business.

Friday’s ruling suggested that Alvarez and his legal team, The Maloney Firm have more work to do.

“Because the Complaint alleges the citizenship of the LLC defendants as if they were corporations, rather than as limited liability companies, the Complaint has not properly alleged the citizenship of those parties,” noted the honorable Percy Anderson, district judge for the U.S. District Court in the official ruling, a copy of which has been obtained by BoxingScene.com. “Absent unusual circumstances, a party seeking to invoke diversity jurisdiction should be able to allege affirmatively the actual citizenship of the relevant parties.

“As a result, Plaintiffs’ allegations are not sufficient to invoke this Court’s diversity jurisdiction.”

Alvarez filed the lawsuit with the Central District of California on Tuesday, alleging breach of contract by de la Hoya and Golden Boy Promotions. The suit sought a minimum settlement of $280 million—the remaining amount of Alvarez’s record breaking 11-fight. $365 million contract he signed upon the three-division champion and his promoter bringing their business to DAZN-USA in the early hours of October 11, 2018.

As revealed in the filed lawsuit, the actual contract exists between DAZN and Golden Boy, the latter whom in turn pays Alvarez. By his own admission, Alvarez has never seen the contract between the two, despite multiple requests for a copy which he alleges have been refused by both parties.

Alvarez and de la Hoya endured a falling out last year over this very subject, though have done their best to move forward in a business sense. Their contentious relationship was on display throughout fight week leading up to Alvarez’s eventual 11th round knockout of Sergey Kovalev to win a light heavyweight title last November at MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas.

Such efforts to remain business professional have been severely challenged in 2020, first by the ongoing coronavirus pandemic and then through what Alvarez and his legal team officially classify as tortious interference on the part of DAZN. Efforts to land on an approved opponent for Alvarez’s next fight have been compromised by the insistence of the global superstar having to take a massive paycut—which he was willing to do, within reason—all while claiming final say on whom he faces.

Such language is not found in the existing contract, as discovered by Alvarez’s attorney. The contract states that “Alvarez’ opponents would be mutually selected by [Alvarez] and [Golden Boy Promotions], subject to [Alvarez’s] final approval, not to be unreasonably withheld.”

A Notice of Assignment was submitted on September 10, naming Alka Sagar as the magistrate judge, who was to receive all discovery-related motions. All seven named defendants were served with a certify copy of the lawsuit, instructed to respond to the complaint within 21 days after service of summons or “file a motion under Rule 12 of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure. The answer or motion must be served on the plaintiff or plaintiff’s attorney.”

Failure to respond to the complaint will result in a judgment by default against the defendants, for the relief demanded in the complaint. Some time has now been added to the clock, the burden of proof now resides with Alvarez and The Maloney Firm to properly allege citizenship of the named LLC defendants.

“Accordingly, the Court dismisses Plaintiffs’ Complaint for lack of subject matter jurisdiction,” judge Anderson stated in the dismissal. “A district court may, and should, grant leave to amend when it appears that subject matter jurisdiction may exist, even though the complaint inadequately alleges jurisdiction. See 28 U.S.C. § 1653; Trentacosta v. Frontier Pacific Aircraft Industries, Inc., 813 F.2d 1553, 1555 (9th Cir. 1987).

“Therefore, the Court grants Plaintiffs leave to amend the Complaint to establish federal subject matter jurisdiction.

Alvarez now has until September 28 to file a First Amended Complaint. Failure to do so or adequately allege the District Court’s jurisdiction will potentially result in an outright dismissal.

 

[Amare's Right Hook]

Judge was like....... ?

 

[patscorpio]

Judge was like....... ?

get ready for some contract info and other things to be exposed lol

 

[patscorpio]

ALVAREZ LAWSUIT UPDATE: GOLDEN BOY SAYS IT HAS A FORCE MAJEURE CLAUSE BUT DAZN DOESN'T
By Scott Shaffer


26/10/2020

Golden Boy Promotions and Oscar De La Hoya have made their first appearance in the $280 million lawsuit filed by Saul “Canelo” Alvarez. In documents filed on October 26th, Golden Boy says Alvarez still has not served it with the lawsuit he started seven weeks ago, but when Alvarez finally does get around to serving the lawsuit, Golden Boy will ask to have Alvarez’s claims decided by private arbitration rather than in a court of law. Golden Boy also divulged a new detail about its contract with Alvarez, one that it plans to use as a defense: Golden Boy says it was not legally required to deliver a fight to Alvarez after March 2020 because its contract with Alvarez contains a force majeure clause that excuses its obligations due to the coronavirus pandemic.

By way of background, Alvarez is suing his promoter, Golden Boy and De La Hoya, as well as DAZN, the broadcast newtwork that owns the exclusive rights to his fights over the next few years. Alvarez does not have a contract with DAZN, but he claims he is entitled to enforce the contract between Golden Boy and DAZN that covers his fights. Alvarez filed the lawsuit in early Septmber. On October 8th, 2020, DAZN removed the action to federal court before any defendant had been served. Mediation between the parties has failed, and Alvarez has not moved the lawsuit forward at all.

Golden Boy’s October 26th statement, signed by attorney Ricardo Cestero, says: “Golden Boy contends that all of the claims pleaded by Alvarez must be arbitrated. Alvarez and Golden Boy are parties to a promotional contract. The arbitration clause in that agreement is broad, covering ‘any claim, controversy or dispute arising out of or related to this agreement.’ Because each of Alvarez’ claims against Golden Boy arise directly out of the rights and obligations contained within the promotional contract, Golden Boy is entitled to have all such claims resolved through binding arbitration. Accordingly, Golden Boy intends to seek to enforce its right to arbitration pursuant to the Promotional Contract and to stay or dismiss this action to allow the arbitration to proceed."

The phrase "force majeure" means "superior force" in French. In legal terms, a force majeure clause is a contract provision that relieves a party from performing its contractual obligations when certain circumstances beyond its control arise, making performance inadvisable, commercially impracticable, illegal, or impossible. It is not settled law whether the coronavirus pandemic is considered a force majeure, and different force majeure clauses may be worded differently, so it is difficult to evaluate whether such a cluase, assuming it really exists, would save Golden Boy from Alvarez's lawsuit.

Golden Boy begins to make its case for the force majeure defense, writing: "By way of example, the promotional contract contains a broad force majeure provision, which excuses Golden Boy’s performance during the global pandemic. [Editor’s note: the validity of that contract interpretation has yet to be determined by a court]. Pursuant to that provision, if Golden Boy’s performance is prevented or materially impeded by a force majeure or other reason beyond Promoter’s reasonable control, Golden Boy has the right to terminate or extend the term of the promotional contract. The DAZN- Golden Boy agreement does not contain a similar provision. Accordingly, the claims and defenses to be litigated between Alvarez and Golden Boy are different from the claims and defenses to be litigated between Alvarez and the DAZN Defendants. In short, Alvarez can identify no legitimate basis on which to refuse to submit its claims against Golden Boy to arbitration."

One important bit of commentary: right now, Golden Boy and DAZN seem to be united in interest of defeating Alvarez's lawsuit. If that changes, Golden Boy seems to be implying that it has a claim against DAZN because, according to today's filing, DAZN has no force majeure clause and therefore should have delivered to Golden Boy whatever is required in their contract.

 

[Primetime]

Claiming force majeure is interesting but is Canelo's grievance that GB and DAZN failed to deliver a set amount of fights within this year, or that they simply don't have *any* fights lined up for him til this day?

Obviously it's hard to claim "force majeure" going into November when we've had a completed NBA season, ongoing NFL season, a dozen UFC events, and at least a half dozen boxing events... so definitely could've had at least one Canelo fight in these last 7 months.

 

[R=G]

Fight somebody, nygga!!

 

[LauderdaleBoss]

All this nikka had to do was make the Plant, BJS, or Smith fights.

 

[Kunty McPhuck]

GB want the live gate money. This is exactly what UFC tried with McGregor, until he made the exhibition with Poirier and UFC all of a sudden want to make a McGregor fight.