Soca artiste Patrice Roberts has been ordered to pay her former management company more than US$30,000 following a High Court ruling, although she also secured US$9,000 in a successful counterclaim for unpaid digital royalties.
In a decision delivered on Tuesday, Justice Robin Mohammed ruled that Soca Bookings Incorporated was entitled to compensation for services provided between 2015 and 2017, despite weaknesses in its contractual arguments.
The case stemmed from an oral management agreement made in February 2015 between the Canadian-based company and Roberts. Under that arrangement, the company said it handled comprehensive artiste management, including bookings, branding, recording coordination, and international promotion.
While the court accepted that an agreement existed, it found that crucial terms were never clearly defined—particularly whether management fees were due immediately or only after the venture became profitable.
Justice Mohammed accepted Roberts’ position that payment was contingent on profitability, which the company failed to demonstrate. As a result, its contractual claim for management fees was dismissed.
However, the court determined that Roberts had still benefited from the services provided. Applying the legal principle of quantum meruit, the judge ruled that she was required to compensate the company for the value of the work performed.
The court awarded Soca Bookings US$22,535 for management services and an additional US$8,200 for loans and advances made on Roberts’ behalf, bringing the total to US$30,735. A separate claim of US$11,600 related to a music video production was rejected due to insufficient supporting evidence.
Roberts, in turn, succeeded in her counterclaim after the court found that Soca Bookings had collected digital revenue on her behalf but failed to properly account for it. In the absence of precise financial records, the court accepted US$9,000 as a reasonable estimate and awarded that sum to the artiste.
Both sides were granted pre-judgment interest and legal costs. The court indicated that the amounts may be offset, leaving Roberts liable for a reduced payment of US$25,104.12, along with TT$26,983.71 in costs.
Soca Bookings was represented by attorneys Tara Thompson, Gideon McMaster and Joel Roper, while Roberts’ legal team included Sterling John and Shelly Clarke.
In closing, Justice Mohammed cautioned against informal business arrangements in the entertainment industry, noting that clearer, written agreements could have prevented the dispute.
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