So far this spring, the New York Yankees have been winning on the field, but it appears that the franchise may have just taken an “L” in the legal world. The Bronx Bombers have come to a settlement ASC Ticket Co., which had sued them for cancelling nearly $500,000 worth of season tickets earlier this year.
The terms of the settlement are confidential, according to Larry Hutcher of Davidoff, Hutcher & Citron, which represented ASC in the case. But a source at one of the leading ticket resale markets has confirmed that a large number of Yankee tickets were recently re-uploaded and made available for purchase.
Based in Maryland, ASC Ticket Co. filed suit in New York after the team decided to revoke more than 50 season tickets at Yankee Stadium. They argued that the cancellation violated Article 25 of New York’s Arts and Cultural Affairs Law, which regulates ticket resale in the state, and requested that the court reinstate the tickets and also award damages of at least $1 million.
The judge handed ASC an early victory in March, issuing a temporary restraining order blocking the team from selling 49 of the 52 disputed season tickets pending the outcome of the case. With the season approaching, that was a key moment, as Hutcher told Amplify at the time. “[The TRO] was a great result for us,” he said. “In the event that we are successful, the tickets will still be there and the Yankees can’t argue that our request for a release is moot because the tickets have already been sold.”
Officials from ASC Tickets declined to comment on the settlement, citing the confidentiality required by the settlement. An email to the Yankees media relations office had not received a response as of Thursday afternoon.
New York opened its season with four wins in six games, including an 11-4 victory over the Tampa Bay Rays in front of 46,776 fans on Tuesday – Monday’s scheduled home opener had been victim of a rare snow-out. On the secondary market, tickets moved very well for the contest despite it being mid-week. Tickets for Opening Day at Yankee Stadium sold at an average price of $184, according to data from Ticket Club. The game was the best-selling home opener among all American League teams on the secondary market.