{"id":10047,"date":"2026-03-22T05:09:50","date_gmt":"2026-03-22T05:09:50","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/usatrustedlawyers.com\/blog\/star-wins-trial-in-pat-the-manager-lawsuit\/"},"modified":"2026-03-22T05:09:50","modified_gmt":"2026-03-22T05:09:50","slug":"star-wins-trial-in-pat-the-manager-lawsuit","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/usatrustedlawyers.com\/blog\/star-wins-trial-in-pat-the-manager-lawsuit\/","title":{"rendered":"Star Wins Trial in Pat the Manager Lawsuit"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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\n\tA jury has rejected legal claims brought against Chance the Rapper by his longtime manager Pat Corcoran<\/strong>, known as Pat the Manager.<\/p>\n

\n\tChicago jurors came back with the verdict on Friday night (March 20) following a two-and-a-half week trial in the messy legal battle between Chance (born Chancelor Bennett) and Corcoran, who were once inseparable but parted ways on bad terms a few years back.<\/p>\n

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\n\tCorcoran first sued Chance in 2020, alleging he was owed $3.8 million in unpaid commissions \u2014 including under a so-called \u201csunset clause\u201d that ran three years post-termination \u2014 even though the two never had a written contract. The jury rejected those claims on Friday, according to the Chicago Sun-Times<\/a><\/em>.<\/p>\n

\n\tJurors also sided with Chance on his 2021 countersuit<\/a>, which accused Cocoran of breaching fiduciary duties and exploiting career opportunities for his own benefit. \u00a0But they awarded the rapper only $35 in damages, per the Sun-Times<\/em>, rather than the $1 million sought by Chance.<\/p>\n

\n\tIn a statement sent to Billboard<\/em>, Jay Scharkey<\/strong>, an attorney for Corcoran, said, \u201cWe respect the jury\u2019s decision, but the message to music managers is clear: Get it in writing. The jury award of $35 speaks to how seriously the jury viewed Chance\u2019s case.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tA representative for Chance did not immediately provide comment on the outcome.<\/p>\n

\n\tThe verdict followed closing arguments on Friday, during which lawyers for Chance and Corcoran made their final pitches to the jury in the years-long legal fight.<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cThis story is about someone who becomes famous and forgets what it took to get him there,\u201d said Robert D. Sweeney<\/strong>, one of Corcoran\u2019s lawyers, setting the tone for his closing statement.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\n\tSweeney argued that the case centers on securing the money Corcoran says he\u2019s owed under a 15% net deal allegedly struck early in Chance\u2019s career in 2013, including the three-year post-termination \u201csunset clause.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

\n\tSweeney pointed to Corcoran as the \u201ccommon denominator\u201d in Chance\u2019s success, citing the 2016 album Coloring Book<\/em>\u2019s feats on the Billboard 200, where it spent 125 weeks, plus his three Grammy wins the following year. He went on to compare it to Chance\u2019s 2025 Star Line<\/em>, released after the two stopped working together, which spent just one week on the Billboard 200. \u201cYou can be great, but if you don\u2019t have the right people around you, how\u2019s that going to work out?\u201d Sweeney said.<\/p>\n

\n\tSweeney added that there was \u201cno doubt Pat loved this guy,\u201d describing how Corcoran went the extra mile by taking on roles in promotion and distribution. \u201cPat took his 15% and did everything to prove the big labels wrong and the importance of staying independent,\u201d he said.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cThis [case] is about two guys working their butts off, then having a disagreement, parting ways and someone not getting paid,\u201d Sweeney said, adding: \u201cPat brings a claim for breach of contract of an oral agreement. It\u2019s hard to know what was said, so it\u2019s about which story makes sense.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

\n\tWhen Chance\u2019s lawyer, Precious S. Jacobs-Perry<\/strong>,\u00a0took the floor, she told jurors that there is \u201cno evidence\u201d of a sunset agreement beyond \u201cPat\u2019s own say so,\u201d framing the case as \u201call about Pat\u2019s greed and wanting something he doesn\u2019t deserve. Just because you want it, doesn\u2019t mean you take it.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

\n\tJacobs-Perry presented written communications between the two parties starting in 2014, in which Corcoran outlined the oral agreement, which included the 15% management commission but made no mention of the post-termination agreement. The alleged sunset clause, she said, was first mentioned in Corcoran\u2019s November 2020 lawsuit.<\/p>\n

\n\tShe went on to argue that Corcoran took undue credit for the rapper\u2019s success while building his own ventures, ultimately neglecting Chance\u2019s projects. \u201cAll companies he created had nothing to do with Chance, he was investing in himself. Pat used his position to enrich himself repeatedly,\u201d she said, adding, \u201cHe chose not to be by Chance\u2019s side like he was before.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

\n\tJacobs-Perry also pointed to alleged lapses in management, including 24,000 merchandise orders that went unfulfilled in 2019, arguing Corcoran had become \u201cabsent\u201d and overly reliant on delegation.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\n\tShe further accused Corcoran of seeking equity in Chance\u2019s recordings through UnitedMasters in 2017. According to Jacobs-Perry, Chance confronted him after the fact, \u201choping his friend would tell him it wasn\u2019t true.\u201d Sweeney, however, maintained his client was not seeking ownership, but compensation for past work.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\n\tIn closing, Jacobs-Perry said two key questions remain: whether the alleged sunset agreement exists, and whether Corcoran \u201cinterfered\u201d in Chance\u2019s career by inserting himself into deals without the artist\u2019s knowledge.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cPat filed his complaint, Chance decided to stand up for himself,\u201d she said. \u201cChance chose independence, freedom and Pat had a golden opportunity to work with a talented artist. But he squandered that opportunity by betraying his friend.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n


\"Billboard
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