verbal contract over sports tickets

[salfonsi]

I had a fellow employee agree to purcase 4 sports tickets at face value. (a real deal!) I talked to the guy for a whole week before the game about payment and that I had the tickets at my desk. I even talked to him the morning of the game (evening game). He was always to busy to come down to my desk to pay or pick up the tickets. He never said anything about backing out. He left the office the day of the game without paying or picking up the tickets and as a result, the tickets went to waste. It's a two hour travel time to reach the stadium from where I live. If he had said anything at all about not buying the tickets, I may have been able to sell to someone else. He lead me to believe he was purchasing them.
Is there any way to recoup the price of the tickets? He now refuses to pay, saying he never committed to purchasing them. (But he did tell other people here where I work, that he was going to the game. HELP!

 

[lawrat]

I am a law school graduate. What I offer is mere information, not to be construed as forming an attorney client relationship.

If the price of the tickets (total) was less than $500, your verbal agreement should hold up. Not only that, but if your witnesses are willing to stand up for you, you should have a pretty much cut and dry case.

The other thing is this: you detrimentally relied on his promise to you and did not sell the tickets to anyone else. This is why you never do business with someone at work.

Make him pay (ask him nicely) OR take him to small claims court.