Promoter Sharon Burke sued for $6m
Hardware and Lumber accuses artiste manager of failing to settle outstanding debt for supplies for Chris Brown and Friends concert
Published:Saturday | September 7, 2024 | 6:44 AMTanesha Mundle/Staff Reporter
Well-known artiste manager and promoter, Sharon Burke, and her company are being sued by Hardware and Lumber for failing to settle an outstanding debt of $5.6 million (in addition to other sums) for supplies used in last year August’s staging of the Chris Brown and Friends concert at the National Stadium in Kingston.
In the suit filed on August 2, 2024 in the Supreme Court, the hardware company is contending that the supplies purchased amounted to $6,908,927.82, of which only $1,221,000 was paid, leaving a balance of $5,687,827.82.
It further contends that the defendants’ delinquency, whether jointly and/or severally, has caused the hardware company to incur administrative/recovery charges totalling $1,137,585.56.
After being unable to successfully settle the matter, proprietors for the hardware company filed the claim last month against Burke and Solid View Limited for breach of contract in which it is not only seeking to recover the outstanding payment but also approximately $1.1 million in administrative or recovery cost.
The claimant is also suing the defendants for interest at one per cent above the commercial bank lending rate from December 2023 to the date of payment and/or the judgment.
URGENT DELIVERY
According to the particulars of the claim, Burke notified the hardware company in August 2023 of her intent to obtain goods for the stage show, which would be held on August 27.
On or about August 17, of last year, Burke completed a cash-on-delivery form after identifying herself as the customer for the transaction for Solid View Limited.
The supplies were subsequently dispatched to the claimant between August 17 and 18, 2023.
Burke and the hardware store had agreed that the purchase was solely a cash transaction and not a credit transaction. However, the goods were delivered without full payment.
The businesswoman had reportedly personally guaranteed that the outstanding sums would be paid without undue delay but expressed urgency in receiving the hardware supplies in preparation for the event, which was widely anticipated and well supported.
As a result, the hardware company agreed to her request for urgent delivery.
However, the court documents revealed, the defendants failed to complete payment for the goods despite numerous requests via telephone and otherwise.
The persistent delinquency on the part of the defendants, whether jointly and/or severally, had resulted in the claimant writing to Burke via email on December 13, 2023, to make a formal demand for the outstanding balance.
Failing to achieve any successful action on the matter, proprietors of the hardware company took the matter to court.
Attorney-at-law Mark-Paul Cowan is representing the claimant.