If
“it
depends”
is
the
#1
reflexive
answer
to
a
legal
question,
“get
it
in
writing”
has
to
be
somewhere
near
the
top
of
that
list.
If
your
1L
Contracts
course
was
anything
like
mine,
you
know
that
a
written
contract
is
the
golden
standard.
You
might
be
able
to
prove
the
existence
of
a
contract
by
repeated
behavior
and
payment,
but
going
to
court
and
collecting
damages
becomes
a
much
steeper
path
when
you
don’t
have
a
document
with
clearly
negotiated
clauses
to
point
to.
Pat
Corcoran
found
that
out
the
hard
way
when
he
took
Chance
The
Rapper
to
court
over
breaching
a
handshake
contract
that
he
claimed
promised
a
cut
of
royalties
three
years
after
termination.
Considering
this
jury
verdict,
he
should
have
got
it
in
writing.
Rolling
Stone
has
coverage:
Chance
the
Rapper
has
reached
the
end
of
a
five-year
legal
battle
with
his
former
manager,
Pat
Corcoran.
Following
jury
deliberations
in
a
trial
that
ran
for
just
over
two
weeks,
the
artist
born
Chancelor
Bennett
was
awarded
$35
in
his
countersuit
against
Corcoran,
who
he
alleged
exploited
his
position
as
manager,
demanded
kickbacks,
and
damaged
the
musician’s
reputation.The
lawsuit,
which
sought
$1
million,
was
initially
filed
in
February
2021.
It
arrived
just
over
two
months
after
Corcoran
filed
his
own
lawsuit
seeking
$3.8
million
in
unpaid
expenses
and
commissions
from
the
rapper
related
to
touring,
merchandise,
and
other
responsibilities.
Going
to
court,
winning
a
damage
to
reputation
claim,
and
only
winning
$35?
That
“I
met
Kanye
West
I’m
never
going
to
fail”
line
keeps
aging
like
milk.
Sure,
he
technically
won
—
and
not
having
to
pay
the
$3.8M
is
nothing
to
shirk
off
—
but
to
come
up
35
bucks
after
five
years
of
court
back
and
forth
is
Pyrrhic
as
all
hell.
Factoring
in
lawyer
fees,
he
may
have
been
better
off
financially
by
settling
and
paying
some
portion
of
the
initial
shakedown
attempt
back
in
2021.
Then
again,
value
is
subjective;
perhaps
the
I-told-you-so
of
a
jury
agreeing
that
your
former
manager
was
a
career
liability
is
the
real
prize,
even
if
the
cash
value
of
the
damage
to
your
career
could
barely
cover
a
meal
at
Potbelly.
Congratulations
to
Chance
on
the
victory!
Double
cheers
for
not
having
to
worry
about
people
asking
to
borrow
money
after
seeing
your
win
in
the
papers.
Chance
the
Rapper
Awarded
$35
in
Exploitation
Countersuit
Against
Former
Manager
[Rolling
Stone]
Earlier:
Chance
The
Rapper
In
Court
Over
Multimillion-Dollar
Handshake
Contract
Dispute
Chris
Williams
became
a
social
media
manager
and
assistant
editor
for
Above
the
Law
in
June
2021.
Prior
to
joining
the
staff,
he
moonlighted
as
a
minor
Memelord™
in
the
Facebook
group Law
School
Memes
for
Edgy
T14s
.
He
endured
Missouri
long
enough
to
graduate
from
Washington
University
in
St.
Louis
School
of
Law.
He
is
a
former
boat
builder
who
is
learning
to
swim
and
is
interested
in
rhetoric,
Spinozists
and
humor.
Getting
back
in
to
cycling
wouldn’t
hurt
either.
You
can
reach
him
by
email
at [email protected]
and
by
tweet
at @WritesForRent.