Chance the Rapper has won his court battle against former manager Pat Corcoran.
On Friday (March 20), according to the Chicago Sun-Times, a jury found that Corcoran, formerly known as Pat the Manager, failed to prove that he was owed $3.8 million in unpaid commissions and royalties by his then-client.
Chance (real name Chancellor Bennett) was managed by Corcoran for nearly 10 years until their partnership dissolved in 2020 following the release of Chance's 2019 album, The Big Day.
"I claim victory in the name of the. Lord," Chance told reporters following the verdict, which came after two hours of jury deliberation. The 32-year-old originally sought $1 million in damages, however the amount awarded ended up being just $35. Corcoran, however, received a suggestion to relinquish the website domain ChanceRaps.com.
"We respect the jury’s decision, but the message to music managers is clear: Get it in writing," Jay Scharkey, one of Corcoran’s lawyers, told the Sun-Times. "The jury award of $35 speaks to how seriously the jury viewed Chance’s case."
According to Corcoran, he and Chance had established a "sunset clause," where he was allegedly entitled to three years of income following his termination in April 2020. Chance countersued his former manager in 2021 for breach of duty and exploitation.
While taking the stand earlier this month, Chance said that he should have fired Corcoran sooner after a series of questionable business decisions between 2017 and 2018. The rapper also said that he and Corcoran had established an "at-will agreement that didn’t address termination."
"We moved that way forever. We never discussed the sunset clause, we just discussed how I’d pay him," Chance said. "And one thing that stayed consistent is that I paid him his 15 percent [in net proceeds]. … I kept paying him that 15 percent. I can’t think of one situation where he did meaningful work and I didn’t pay him."
