Just wanted to ad anoyther thing about the company. They are being sued big time by a bunch of models. This is part of an article from the LA Times. I know they are very nervous about being sued.
Models Get Tough; Their lawsuit alleges that certain agencies illegally fixed fees and charged excessive commissions The Los Angeles Times; Los Angeles, Calif.; Jul 5; VALLI HERMAN-COHEN;
DC_ABS
Last week, [Carolyn Fears], 32, joined five other California models in filing a class-action lawsuit in New York federal court against eight top modeling agencies, alleging that the firms violate the law by fixing fees and charging far more in commissions than is legal. Fears hopes the lawsuit will give models with New York agencies more protection and a larger share of their earnings. The case, filed by a partner of antitrust heavy hitter David Boies of Boies, Schiller & Flexner, alleges that New York modeling agencies have been fixing prices on fees for nearly 30 years.
According to the lawsuit, models are given form contracts, which the agencies claim are standard and not subject to negotiation. Few complain because like Fears and co-plaintiffs Amanda Masters, Lorelei Shellist, Barbara Cheeseborough, Carla Gross (also known as Sebastian Cardon) and Justin Klentner, they are concerned that they may be blacklisted—a key reason it has taken so long for the allegedly illegal practices to come to light, according to Brian Rishwain, a partner in the Los Angeles firm Johnson and Rishwain, which has joined the case.
Most of the models involved in the lawsuit are edging toward the ends of their careers and have established other sources of income, which helps shield them from potential backlash. Jobs have become scarce in the slow advertising climate following Sept. 11, making many models averse to more risk. Shellist, of San Diego, was reluctant to discuss the case because she still works as a model, in addition to using her fashion experiences to teach teen girls about self-esteem. "Who wants to bite the hand that feeds them?" she said. "The majority of us make a normal, average living, " said Fears, who estimated the average salary of a successful model at $40,000."There were years that I was borrowing money from my parents to get by."
David
Orlando, Florida
0 comments