A federal judge from the District of Maryland has found that a purported agent of College Sports Television Network, Inc. (CSTV) misrepresented his ability to get athletic contests involving historically black colleges and universities on the network, and thus is liable to the producer that represented the college’s interests.
In a default judgment ruling, the court ordered Victor Pelt, the owner of New Vision Sports Properties, LLC, a California limited liability company, to pay almost $2 million to plaintiffs HBCU Pro Football, LLC, and President and CEO Ronald E. Richardson.
HBCU is a Maryland limited liability company that produces television broadcasts of college athletic contests involving historically black colleges and universities. Victor Pelt was introduced to HBCU in May of 2007 as “someone who had a track record of getting sporting events from historically black colleges and universities broadcasted on CSTV,” according to the court. “Pelt represented himself to HBCU as an official broadcast agent of CSTV.”
After a meeting between the parties in the spring of 2008, HBCU agreed to provide recorded broadcasts of three college football games involving historically black colleges and universities, to which HBCU had secured the broadcasts rights. In addition to providing recorded broadcasts of the three football games, HBCU agreed to pay NVSP a $50,000 broadcast fee for each game. In return, NSVP pledged to broadcast the games on CSTV’s national television network and via online streaming on CSTV’s website. The agreement further provided that NVSP would “secure on-campus, on-site and air-advertising sales prior to each broadcast” and “guaranteed HBCU a minimum gross revenue payment of $400,000 per game.”
HBCU provided recorded broadcasts to NVSP for each of the three games. HBCU also paid NVSP a $50,000 broadcast fee for each game, for a total of $150,000. HBCU received no payment for any broadcasting revenues from NSVP, and games aired on CSTV.
HBCU obtained loans from various banks to finance its obligations under its contracts with NVSP. Upon request from one such bank, Harbor Bank, Pelt provided a letter confirming the existence of the contractual relationship between HBCU and NVSP on CSTV letterhead.
On March 4, 2009, Mallory Levitt, CBS’s Vice President and Assistant General Counsel for Intellectual Property, sent a letter to Pelt stating that CBS had recently become aware that Pelt has been “making false representations” that he and NVSP were official broadcast agents for CBS College Sports Network (CBSC). Specifically, the letter stated that “we are seriously concerned with your false representations as such use constitutes an improper association, which trades on the good will and reputation of CBS and CBSC and will likely cause, and has already caused, third parties to mistakenly believe that you and your company are affiliated with CBS and CBSC when there is no such affiliation.”
Lindsey also sent a letter to HBCU Attorney Martin King, stating that NVSP “is not currently, nor was it at any time in 2008, an official broadcast agent of CSTV . . . and has no authority to bind CBSC in any manner.” Lindsey further wrote that “CBSC never agreed to air, never intended to air and never aired any of the HBCU programming . . . on its television network or via online streaming.”
On January 13, 2010, HBCU sued NVSP, CSTV, and Pelt in the Circuit Court for Baltimore City, alleging breach of contract, intentional misrepresentation, and unjust enrichment. On February 26, 2010, CSTV removed the case to the District of Maryland.
After both NSVP and Pelt failed to file an answer or otherwise defend, HBCU filed a motion for default judgment against NVSP and Pelt on July 20, 2010. Two days later, a default order was entered.
HBCU reached a settlement agreement with CSTV, and the case was dismissed on December 14, 2010. The court then granted HBCU’s unopposed motion to re-open the case for the limited purpose of perfecting a default judgment against NVSP and Pelt.
To that end, the court awarded:
HBCU $1,507,838.31 for breach of the written agreement against NVSP, plus $328.77 in prejudgment interest per day from the date of this report until judgment is entered; and
HBCU $345,505.92 for breach of the oral contract against NVSP, plus $49.32 in prejudgment interest per day from the date of this Report until judgment is entered; and
HBCU $611,800 for intentional misrepresentation, against NVSP and Pelt, jointly and severally; and
HBCU $1,000,000 in punitive damages against Pelt.
HBCU Pro Football, LLC v. New Vision Sports Properties, LLC, et al.; D.Md.;
Case No. WDQ-10-0467, 2011 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 55976; 5/24/11.
Attorneys of Record: (for plaintiff) E David Hoskins, LEAD ATTORNEY, The Law Offices of E David Hoskins LLC, Baltimore, MD. (for defendant) Thomas Curley, LEAD ATTORNEY, Levine Sullivan Koch and Schulz LLP, Washington, DC.
