Madison Square Garden Entertainment Corp. can ban lawyers suing the company from attending concerts and theatrical performances at its venues even if they have valid tickets, an appeals court ruled, overturning a lower court decision.
(Bloomberg) — Madison Square Garden Entertainment Corp. can ban lawyers suing the company from attending concerts and theatrical performances at its venues even if they have valid tickets, an appeals court ruled, overturning a lower court decision.
Attorney Larry Hutcher sued MSG on behalf of former Knicks and Rangers season ticket holders whose passes were not renewed for alleged reselling. He claims in a separate action that the company retaliated by revoking his Knicks season tickets and barring all 60 lawyers at his firm from events at MSG, as well as the Beacon Theater and Radio City Music Hall, which the company also operates.
New York State Supreme Court Judge Lyle E. Frank in November issued a preliminary injunction blocking MSG from denying access to anyone presenting a valid ticket for theatrical performances and concerts on the day of the event, citing a state civil rights law which says that no one who is 21 or older and “behaves appropriately” can be denied entry to a cultural event.
Frank — who excluded sporting events from his decision — also said “there appears to be no rational basis for the policy instituted by the defendants except to dissuade attorneys from bringing suit against them.”
An appeals court in Manhattan on Tuesday reversed Frank’s decision, saying he was wrong to issue a preliminary injunction because the civil rights law limits claimants to monetary compensation. That recognizes the validity of the civil rights law, making MSG liable to pay $500 every time it refuses access to a theatrical performance or a concert, Hutcher said following the appeals court ruling.
“Basically what the court is inviting us to do is go to the event and get a check for $500 every time we are denied admission,” he said in a phone interview, which he said his firm will do. “I think what this is basically saying is this is something the legislature should address but there are a lot of people at my firm who will make a lot of money who cannot attend events.”
The company is “very pleased with today’s appellate ruling,” a spokesperson for MSG said in an email.
The lawyer ban has also prompted New York’s state liquor authority to investigate whether the policy violates laws that require venues that sell alcohol to allow access to the general public. MSG sued the agency earlier this month, with Chairman James Dolan accusing it of “outrageous abuses,” calling the threat to revoke the liquor licenses a direct assault on fans.
The company has argued that it has the the right to refuse admission to anyone. It also said it formalized an internal policy in July blocking attorneys involved in ongoing litigation against the company from attending events at its venues to prevent “improper communication with MSG employees.” MSG denied revoking Hutcher’s season tickets but said it declined to renew them.
The lawyer spat has also put a spotlight on the company for the use of facial recognition software to identify lawyers entering its venue, which has led to an investigation by New York Attorney General Letitia James.
The case is Hutcher v. Madison Square Garden Entertainment Corp., 653793/2022, New York State Supreme Court, New York County.
(Updates with company comment)
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