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Q: Withdrawing from contracts

I accepted a four week non-Equity contract but days after doing so was offered an eight week standard Equity contract running over the same period. Is there any way I can withdraw from the original signing?

A: You do not say how you came to enter into a non Equity contract in the first place. It may well be that this is in breach of one of the number of collective bargaining agreements which exist between various management associations and Equity, requiring standard contracts of engagement for professional stage performers.

If you think this is at all likely you should seek assistance from Equity to try to extricate you from the contract. Subject to this, a contract freely entered into by you and not induced by some misrepresentation on the part of the other party will be binding upon you. Once an offer is made by one party and accepted by the other and supported by consideration, such as a promise to provide services in exchange for payment, a binding contract comes into existence. Indeed, if the position were reversed and it was the other party who wanted to withdraw, while you did not, you would doubtless be seeking to hold him to it.

You could try to negotiate a release, but there will be no obligation on the other part to release you. You should study the terms of the contract to see whether, perhaps, it legislates for cancellation and provides in that event for only a fixed sum to be payable by the cancelling party (which is known as "liquidated damages") of an amount which you may be willing to pay.

I assume it is not practicable for you to perform both contracts. Even if it were, the Equity contract will certainly have an exclusivity clause and the non-Equity contract will very probably have the same, so you would require the consent of both managements if you were to attempt to undertake both engagements at different times during the same period.

You could take a chance and cancel in the hope that the cost to you would be minimal if the other party, who would have a duty to minimise his loss, is able to secure a suitable replacement at no or little more cost. However, it is very risky to assume in such circumstances that the other party would not be able to establish substantial damages against you.

First published July 1995