Legal Question in Business Law in Maryland

I met with a wedding photographer at a coffee shop in Havre de Grace, MD with my mother and grandmother. I found him online. He showed up with photo books that did not have him name on them and he did not have any business cards. He told us that it would cost $1500 total for a CD of the wedding photos and a finished album. He did not have a contract with him. He told us that it would be $500 down. My mother wrote the check to him and he told us that he would immediately send us a written contract via email. About 5 minutes after he left we got a bad feeling in our stomach that he might have been a scam artist since he did not have anything legitimate with his name on it. We put a stop-hold on the $500 check about 30 minutes after the meeting. We never received the contract he said that he would send us. About 2 weeks later he emailed me saying that the check did not come through. Because of our uneasiness with him we told him that we had decided to go with another photographer. He immediately emailed me back saying that we owed him $500 in cancellation fees. We never signed a contract, he never got any money from us too begin with, and he never sent us "said contract." It says in the Statute of Frauds that the purchase of goods over the cost of $500 is not enforceable by oral contract (we were purchasing the CD and the album). Does he have a case? We think this is ridiculous.


Asked on 10/21/09, 9:03 pm

1 Answer from Attorneys
Robert Sher Wagshal and Sher

Although I disagree with your interpretation of the Statute of Frauds, I don't think he has a case, since he never actually performed any services for you, and he cannot say that he detrimentally relied on the agreement by, for example, foregoing other photo jobs because he was booked for yours. You certainly never agreed to a cancellation fee, and obviously never sent the contract when expected, although that might have something to do with the inability to cash your check. Hopefully this experience has made you and your family wiser and that you won't hand someone money whom you don't know and to whom you have not been referred by anyone you trust before a contract is signed. Fortunately you acted quickly enough to prevent the loss of your money this time.

Read more
Answered on 10/27/09, 9:39 am


Related Questions & Answers

More Business Law questions and answers in Maryland