Hagens Berman Solbol Shapiro Cases

NCAA and Ticketmaster

Date Filed: May 22, 2008

Court: U.S. District Court

Location: California

Hagens Berman Sobol Shapiro filed a lawsuit against Ticketmaster (NASDAQ: IACI) and the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) claiming the two organizations violated racketeering laws by forcing ticket purchasers to pay a non-refundable fee to enter an alleged illegal lottery for the right to purchase tickets to high-profile sporting events.

The ticketing scheme affects college basketball tournaments for both men and women as well as men's hockey tournament games.

According to the suit, if the applicant wins the lottery, the NCAA releases the tickets, but if the applicant is not selected, the NCAA refunds only the ticket price while pocketing the fee.

The lawsuit also claims that the NCAA and Ticketmaster profit from the interest earned by depositing the full ticket prices sent in by lottery participants and holding the losers' money for months, well beyond the date of the alleged lottery.

The defendants are located in California and Indiana, two states in which such lotteries are illegal unless run by the state or licensed charities.

If you purchased tickets to a preliminary or final round college basketball or men's hockey game from 1998 until present you are eligible to join this suit. You can also contact HBSS at info@hbsslaw.com.