When lawyer and bride Elana Glatt was dissatisfied with the color (and freshness) of her centerpieces in her wedding, she did something that comes naturally to lawyers: she sued the florist!
“The use of predominantly pastel centerpieces had a significant impact on the look of the room and was entirely inconsistent with the vision the plaintiffs had bargained for,” Ms. Glatt, a lawyer who practices under the name Elana Elbogen, said in the lawsuit, which she filed on behalf of herself, her husband and her mother-in-law, Tobi Glatt, who paid for the flowers.
Elana Glatt said they had reluctantly paid for the flowers in advance, with a cashier’s check for $27,435.14. She accused the florist of a “bait and switch” scheme, and asked for more than $400,000 in restitution and damages for, among other things, “unjust enrichment” by the florist. In a litany of “distressing and embarrassing” offenses, the lawsuit says the florist substituted cheaper orchids than promised in the bridal bouquet and provided the equivalent of $5 roses from a street vendor, but charged $55 to $65 for those arrangements.
The florists, Stamos Arakas of Posy Floral Design, has this to say:
“My father used to tell me, ‘Don’t deal with lawyers,’” Mr. Arakas said. “Maybe he was right, God bless his soul.”
Links: NY Times article - via Above The Law blog, who has a photo of the lovely (but angry) bride
Previously on Neatorama: Tale of the $54 Million Pants | There is Justice After All: $54 Million Pants Lawsuit Thrown Out
This woman is a lawyer, she would have taken classes in law school on basic contracts. As such, when she started feeling uncomfortable with the terms set forth by the florist, why didn't she stand up and say, "Thanks, but no thanks." It's not like this was the only florist in the whole world. When you consent to a contract that you are not comfortable with, whose fault is it when things go wrong?
I don't think this woman deserved a bad deal just because she was spending $37k on flowers for one day (I do think she's got some strange priorities), but she did get what she was asking for when paying all that money up front and agreeing to terms she wasn't comfortable with. Tsk, as a lawyer she's been educated not to fall into these traps. Of course, this also says she's not really that skilled of a lawyer if she couldn't handle a basic contract.
should read "$700 to $1200 a year"
How much money do people pay a month for a high-speed internet connection just so they can chit chat about little nothings with people they could just call on their cell phones... or even mail a letter to? $60, $70, $100?
So $700 to $1200 a month that you most likely dont really have to spend. What else do you use that connection for? Looking up directions on Yahoo Maps? Not neccessary, reading news? Nice to get feeds so quickly, but also not necessary. It's called an amenty.
Wouldn't you be pissed if someone told you to stop wasting money and switch at least to a dial-up connection or you are a selfish idiot? I would. Know why? It's the USA. You work hard for you $$$ and you are allowed to spend it however you want.
As such, all arguments based on the concept of her having "spent too much money on flowers" and the like are moot.
Now... She entered an agreement... a signed contract. If the florist didn't adhere to the terms. She has the right to sue. She is likely suing not only for breech, but punitive damages. If you are married, you know how important every detail of the wedding is to the bride. This may have "ruined" her dream wedding... so she tacked on extra monies to be recovered.
Does the amount she asking to recover for punitive damages seem excessive? Yeah... sure. But, she's allowed to. Know why? yep... USA.
Everyone is entitled to his/her own opinion... so here's mine. She's not doing anything wrong. She has every right to do what she's doing. Don't like it? Move to China.