A federal judge from the Eastern District of Missouri has delivered a victory to season ticket holders of the St. Louis Rams, who are suing the team after it relocated to Los Angeles.
Specifically, the three groups of plaintiffs, all of which purchased personal seat licenses (PSL) prior to the move, are either seeking the right to purchase seats for Rams games at the Los Angeles Coliseum, or to secure a refund.
The court held that the Rams are contractually obligated to provide the plaintiffs who bought PSLs directly from the team with an opportunity to purchase season tickets. Meanwhile, those who bought tickets from FANS Inc., the Rams ticketing agent, are only entitled to a partial or full refund.
Close to 50,000 people purchased PSLs before the team left for Los Angeles in January, paying up to $1,000 for the licenses, which grant the purchaser the right to buy season tickets.
Of the three plaintiff groups, two were Envision LLC and Richard Arnold. They claimed they still had the right to buy season tickets even though the team had moved to LA.
The third plaintiff group was Ronald McAllister. They claimed they were entitled to refund, pursuant to their contract.
The contract between the aforementioned sellers of the PSLs and the purchasers of the PSLs required the Rams to “use its best efforts” to provide seats for PSL holders. However, the court noted that there was a clause in the FANS contract that clearly states that a Rams relocation would terminate the contract, thus rendering the “best efforts” language moot. No such clause exists in the contract between the team and purchasers.
While those who purchased PSLs through FANS are not afforded the right to buy season tickets, they are entitled to a partial or full refund of their deposit, according to the court.
The court wrote specifically that by the agreement’s “own terms, the right to terminate and a refund of deposits go hand-in-hand. Therefore, the Rams must refund deposits under the FANS agreement.” The court will determine the amount at a later date.
The Consolidated St. Louis Rams Season Ticket License Class Action Lawsuit is McAllister v. The St. Louis Rams LLC, E.D. Mo.; Case No. 4:16-cv-00172
