Live Nation’s fight to shove a ticket-price lawsuit into private arbitration just hit a speed bump. A federal judge in New York has told consumers they can dig into the company’s connections with powerhouse law firm Latham & Watkins and arbitration outfit New Era, a move that could unravel the entertainment giant’s carefully laid defense.
At stake is a sprawling case accusing Live Nation of monopolizing ticketing and squeezing millions of concertgoers with inflated fees. The company insists the claims belong in arbitration, not in court. But Judge Arun Subramanian said buyers deserve a closer look at how Live Nation, its legal team, and New Era work together before that call is made.
For critics, this isn’t just about contracts—it’s about whether the arbitration system itself has been designed to tilt the field. Lawyers for the consumers argue New Era was set up to help corporations duck massive class actions, pointing to prior battles in California where judges raised eyebrows at the coordination between New Era and Latham.
Live Nation denies any collusion and stresses that New Era is simply one of many neutral dispute services it uses. New Era itself insists its only relationship with the entertainment company is as a provider of arbitration services, saying claims of deeper ties were already dismissed in a separate California lawsuit.
Still, California’s courts blocked Live Nation’s arbitration bid last year, forcing the company into a class action—a decision upheld by the Ninth Circuit and now pending before the U.S. Supreme Court. New York’s case is unfolding against that backdrop, and with Judge Subramanian’s order giving 90 days of discovery, Live Nation’s effort to sidestep trial is far from guaranteed.
Meanwhile, in other corners of the legal world, fee battles rage: Susman Godfrey and Lieff Cabraser want a 25% cut—$375 million—from their record-breaking $1.5 billion copyright settlement with AI startup Anthropic, while Kellogg Hansen just secured $185 million in fees from a $630 million auto-tech antitrust settlement after a judge shaved down their request.
From ticket fees to legal fees, the money fights just keep multiplying.
