u/definitize

I've got a line to some of the best producers in the niche whose music is begging to be heard if anyone is looking to book. Throwing out some names that have expressed interest in an LA show + some songs to showcase some talent, can make a connect if needed! Definitely an opportunity to book a bunch of artists whose sound is going to blow up in the matter of a year or so at a discount.

DJ Planet Express
- Forever
- Higher
- HI NRG
K. One
- You're Here
- Culture
- Do You Love Me?
V. Christie
- Make Me Believe
- You & Me
- Thinking About
Shuffa
- Got U' Groovin
- Pacemaker
- Drama City
DJ Dings & Tim Rausch
- Ocean View
- Other Side
- Digital Echo

Feel free to shoot over your info if you have any interest, these guys are excited to get their start here, and booking their LA debut is always a huge artist milestone that I'm sure they'd repay.

Hey guys!

Have to keep things vague (sorry, no names for now), but I thought you guys might have fun if I let you in on this evolving story.

My partner and I celebrate our anniversary at Coachella every year, so we buy presale and book very early. Normally we go with our favorite hosts who we book with immediately after the weekend's over, who hold and honor our reservation everytime. But, for next year, we thought, why not upgrade now that I have my big boy lawyer job and we have steady combined income?

Anyways, this led to me going onto AirBnB back in late February to troll around and see if I could find any cheap bookings within walking distance. I thought I wasn't going to have any luck, until I found a really nice luxury home up for about $2,000 for the weekend with a less than 20 minute walk from the Polo Fields.

Thought the property management company was legit, they're a superhost, and that comes with much stricter standards and guardrails around what a host may cancel for and what they must honor. Knowing this, I booked it immediately, thinking they'd maybe honor it, or at least immediately cancel.

However, and I recommend ANYONE do this if they even so suspect there is a pricing error, I had the intuition to specifically ask whether it was a pricing error as it was for Coachella, and whether they'd honor it. The property management company confirmed not once, not twice, but THREE TIMES that they'd honor the reservation. They then send me documents to sign that they countersigned outside of AirBnB to help shore up everything. They also took the property off their own website and VRBO, in alignment with locking down the reservation.

Two days later, guess what they do? Cancel! They tell me it was a systems provider error and that (and I thought this was rude as hell) I had ample time to find other accommodations.

In response, I sent them a demand letter outlining breach of contract, amongst other theories of liability. Their response? Fuck off to AirBnB and cease and desist contact (note: never tell a lawyer to C&D from contacting you about your illegal acts committed against them, it's fucking stupid).

Then they make their biggest mistake. As I'm sure you know, superhosts are penalized for wrongful cancellations and often are not allowed to rebook the property on AirBnB as a result. So, what did they do? They relisted the property for 10x the price on VRBO thinking I wouldn't notice.

So, I run up the record, take screenshots and get the metadata for everything. I send them a second demand letter outlining exactly what I'm going to do to them and the consequences they'll likely face. They don't respond.

So what did I do? I'm a lawyer, so I filed a pro se (I'm repping myself) complaint in Riverside County Superior Court at Palm Springs Courthouse, and served them fairly recently. Now I'm just waiting on their lawyer to finally speak up and start discussing settlement.

This isn't the full story, the complaint and record of evidence definitely tell a much more comprehensive version of it. However, I don't want to dox myself right now and need to keep certain facts under wraps until things have progressed.

A few answers to questions I know you'll probably have:

Don't they have a legal right to cancel?
- Initially yes, hence why I gave them an out so many times, but after they confirmed they'd honor the price, no.
What legal framework gives you right to sue here?
- When a pricing error exists, often that provides the person selling/providing the service the defense of "unilateral mistake." Unilateral mistake occurs when a price error/mistaken price is provided for a product, and the non-selling party knows or should have reasonably known it was an error, which allows the seller to rescind the contract, as if it never existed.
- Unilateral mistake, however, fails where the selling party has been specifically noticed to a pricing error and they, instead of cancelling the contract, say they will honor it. This is called ratification (i.e., ratifying the pricing error such that a contract is formed around the erroneous price).
  - Here, I noticed them specifically to the potential error (pointing to the low price, telling them it was for Coachella), and they stated that the price was correct and would be honored.
  - Say, conversely, I instead decided to keep my mouth shut and pray they honored it without saying anything. They could cancel and claim that I should've known (which, duh), and have a successful unilateral mistake defense.
- By ratifying the contract, and then subsequently cancelling the reservation, that is clear as day breach of contract.
Can I sue my AirBnB that canceled?
- Likely not. Here, there was probably the cleanest possible record of mistake → ratification → breach. Most people just sneak by and hope for the best. However, here, you have to be loud and open about a potential pricing error and seek that confirmation.
- Only when you have that confirmation of them honoring the suspected price error then can you claim that the mistake was ratified and thus a contract still exists.
Do lawyers take on cases like this? Does it cost anything?
- Yes they do, and yes it does (flat fee or contingency fee), but luckily as a member of the State Bar of California, I'm representing myself.
Why would you do this to a small business?
- Small businesses aren't immune from being scummy assholes.
- Also the owner is one of those 2016-2019 AirBnB hustle bros turned multi-AI-run business milennial loser who brags about his multiple 7 figure businesses and AUM for his property company, he needs a humbling.

So what can you do?

If you have a similar fact pattern (i.e. noticing the property owner/manager to a potential error, the festival pricing, etc. → they state they'll honor it → they cancel), then you may have a case.
If you fit into the above, take as many pictures of everything with timestamps and all.
Do not expect a large sum. Here I'm shooting for a large amount because I can based on the facts (and near certain chances of winning on liability), but everyone's case is different and I'm also representing myself, so I don't have to face paying a lawyer, whether it be a flat fee or a chunk taken out of my eventual settlement or court award.

Feel free to shoot off any questions in the comments :)

Edit: For anyone wondering, yes this is real, no this is not AI (all written by me, I'm a lawyer for christ sake).

Rose Gray

camoufly

IDEMI

Promoters needing Eurotrance/Hard Dance/Speed Garage Artists?