Civil Lawsuit For Unpaid Royalties

Who am I? - I am Thomas Knight, one of the founding members of Bear Ghost. For nearly a decade, I worked with Bear Ghost to create something unique and memorable in the PHX music scene. According to Bear Ghost's bookkeeping, that hard work has translated to a remarkable $128,684.53 in gross streaming income from 2019 to 2022. Unfortunately, the band and their label have refused to pay me.

Summary - I have created this campaign to help cover the legal costs of filing a civil lawsuit. Bear Ghost LLC, their management, and 80/20 Records are liable for damages. After nine months of negotiating, they offered a one-time payment of $22,000.00. However, after I signed the agreement, they backed out and did not respond for weeks.

I had very much wanted to resolve this issue amicably, but it looks like we must now begin the litigation process.

What are we trying to achieve? - We would like to file a declaratory judgment with the Superior Court of Arizona and demand $22,000.00 in unpaid royalties, attorney's fees, and a full audit of their LLC, management, and record label.

What is the next step in the case? - Because this case is under $50,000.00, there will be no judge or jury, so we are seeking relief through compulsory arbitration—this is a cheaper and faster alternative than a court trial. Honestly, this case is so cut and dry that I'm hoping we can reach a judgment before the end of the year.

How much are we raising and why? - I would like to raise at least $2,500 to cover the full retainer of our litigation attorney. He has given us a great price and strongly believes we will win.

If we win this (and I think we will too), every dollar will go back to those who contributed to this campaign.