Marvin Harrison Jr. Says He Never Signed Fanatics Deal—His Dad Did
Fanatics has accused Arizona Cardinals rookie wide receiver Marvin Harrison Jr. and his limited liability company, the Official Harrison Collection, for breach of contract, anticipatory repudiation and tortious interference. But in recent court filings to New York Judge Anar R. Patel, Harrison Jr. contends he never signed a term sheet with Fanatics, and that his LLC is neither his alter ego nor his agent.
The term sheet was instead signed by the LLC’s authorized representative, retired NFL star Marvin Harrison, Sr.—the NFL rookie’s dad.
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The development, reported Thursday by Cllct’s Darren Rovell, came as part of a series of court filings over the last week in a legal dispute that could play out beyond the 2024 NFL season.
Fanatics and the LLC entered into an agreement—dubbed a “binding term sheet”—in May 2023 that bound Harrison Jr. to provide Fanatics with autographed cards and partake in promotional activities. Fanatics insists Harrison Jr. and the LLC breached the agreement by failing to provide the autographed cards, refusing to partake in promotional activities and violating exclusivity and confidentiality provisions. Fanatics insists it has suffered substantial lost profits and reputational harm. The company demands that Patel declare the term sheet is binding and enforceable.
But Harrison Jr., who was the fourth overall pick in the 2024 NFL draft, offers a very different take. In a sworn affidavit, the former Ohio State star insists he was not a party to the term sheet, adding, “I was never requested to, nor did I ever, sign any document that personally obligated me to do anything concerning” the term sheet.
His dad agrees. Marvin Harrison Sr.’s affidavit explicitly supports his son’s narration of events.
“I negotiated and signed” the term sheet “on behalf of The Official Harrison Collection LLC,” Harrison Sr. swore. “There was never any intention for Marvin Harrison Jr. to become personally bound . . . he never signed it either on behalf of The Official Harrison Collection LLC or personally.”
The two sides disagree about whether the term sheet is an enforceable contract. Some courts have found that a term sheet, even when dubbed “binding,” is merely an “an agreement to agree” rather than a contract itself.
Earlier this year, the Court of Appeal of Louisiana ruled that even though former LSU head football coach Ed Orgeron signed a “binding term sheet” with the university in 2020, it wasn’t enforceable, despite the word “binding,” as it was later superseded by an employment contract. But that’s a different fact pattern—prospective employment and actual employment—than the promotional arrangement presented by Fanatics and Harrison Jr.
The LLC insists that even if the term sheet is enforceable, Fanatics breached it by disclosing confidential information about the deal. It also asserts that neither the LLC nor Harrison Jr. have been paid by Fanatics. That contention contradicts Fanatics’ complaint, which stated, “After Harrison Jr. and Fanatics executed the Binding Term Sheet in May 2023, Fanatics made payments to Harrison Jr. over the next few months, including in both August and October 2023.”
Whether the LLC, through Harrison Sr., could function as Harrison’s Jr. alter ego or agent is a major source of tension for Patel to resolve. In his affidavit, Harrison Jr. said, “I have been and am advised that it is perfectly proper to conduct business and contract through limited liability companies and that when one does so there is no personal liability in the event that the company does not fulfill its contractual obligations.” He added, “I understand that one of the purposes of forming a limited liability company is to insulate oneself from personal contractual liability.”
In one court filing, Harrison Jr.’s attorneys argue that in a 2022 case involving Floyd Mayweather, the boxer was “personally dismissed” from the suit regarding an exhibition match scheduled to take place in Dubai because a business had “contracted with Mayweather Promotions, not Floyd Mayweather himself.” That was the case, Harrison Jr. noted, even with Mayweather being president of Mayweather Promotions.
Harrison Jr. is correct in stating an LLC can be used to “insulate oneself from personal contractual liability,” but judges sometimes become skeptical of that argument the more it appears the LLC is merely an extension of the person. The extent to which Harrison Jr. or Harrison Sr. controlled the LLC could become a central, if somewhat personal, question.
The parties have jointly proposed a schedule to Patel that contemplates a completion of pretrial fact discovery by Jan. 31, 2025, pretrial expert discovery by March 31, 2025, and trial readiness conference to be held on April 14, 2025.
Meanwhile, the NFLPA has asked the Cardinals, the NFL and Fanatics to not sell jersey in light of the litigation.
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