Bit Parts

A Manhattan federal district court ruled that TV sports director William Webb must pay commissions to his agent from monies for TV contract renewals made after the agent won an arbitration award against Webb. Robert Lewis Rosen Associates Ltd. (RLR) v. Webb, 03 Civ 6338 (HB). The arbitrator had ordered Webb to pay RLR $355,084, including for costs of arbitration, as well as “additional payments” from contract renewals. The district court confirmed the award, then noted in its subsequent ruling: “Webb has chosen to read ambiguity into the Judgment and contends that no additional payments can ever be due because no further monies are [specifically] detailed. But because Arbitration Awards are confirmed in their entirety or specifically changed or vacated, and in this case the Court expressly denied Defendant's motion to vacate, any arguments about ambiguity or the effects of final judgment are unavailing.” … Defamation/Innocent Construction. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit dismissed a defamation suit by Karla Knafel over unflattering comments columnist Richard Roeper wrote about Knafel's affair with sports figure Michael Jordan. Knafel v. Chicago-Sun-Times Inc., 04-2152. The appeals court concluded: “[I]t is reasonable to read the [contested] passage as saying that although Knafel was having an affair (ie, a longer term relationship) with Jordan, by demanding so much money from him she is demeaning herself. Roeper does not say Knafel has committed the crime of prostitution but, rather, she is making herself sound like she has. The words 'sound like' imply similarity, but not identity. In short, Roeper is hard on Knafel … But his words are reasonably (and easily) subject to an innocent construction; ie, one that stops short of saying she committed a crime.”

Documentaries/Defamation