California residents who are fans of A Day To Remember may be interested to learn that the band won its lengthy legal battle against Victory Records. Back in 2011, ADTR sued their record label for breach of contract, and the initial complaint was followed by numerous accusations from both parties.
Victory Records had previously claimed that ADTR failed to fulfill their recording contract obligations, but a jury in Illinois did not agree with the record label. ADTR originally signed a contract agreeing to deliver five albums to Victory Records, but Victory Records was not satisfied by some of the live recordings and rereleases that ADTR provided. While the contract disputes were still ongoing, Victory Records withheld royalty payments from ADTR after a dispute over a merchandising deal.
When the two-week trial ended on Nov. 22, Victory Records was ordered to pay ADTR $4 million for royalties, merchandise sales and digital download revenue that was previously withheld. The jury determined that ADTR had fulfilled its recording contract obligations, and the label was at fault. ADTR was allowed to retain composition rights for their songs while the label kept the sound recording rights. The bassist for ADTR said that he felt relieved by the verdict.
A litigated contract dispute can take many years to conclude and result in great expense for all of the parties involved. Many contract disputes can be resolved more quickly in out-of-court negotiations spearheaded by the parties’ respective attorneys
Source: THE PRP, “A Day To Remember Win Court Case Against Victory Records, Label Ordered To Pay $4 Million (Updated),” Wookubus, Nov. 23, 2016
