Brown-Forman Heirs Sue Local Jeweler

As a Louisville attorney that has handled a number of high dollar breach of contract cases, I followed with interest the highly publicized case of a local Louisville jeweler that was being sued by the Brown-Forman heirs for allegedly selling jewelry at too high a price. 

According to Jason Riley of the Courier-Journal,

“Louisville jeweler Jim Jackson does not have to refund $800,000 to the family of former Brown-Forman Corp. chairman Robinson S. Brown Jr. for a necklace he sold Brown in 2005.  

Brown’s sons, Robinson S. Brown III and J. McCauley “Mac” Brown, had asked jurors to rescind the sale of an emerald and diamond necklace, claiming Jackson tricked their father into spending $800,000 on jewelry that was worth about $500,000.Jackson, who had tears in his eyes after the jury’s decision, said he was relieved, as the three years of litigation surrounding the necklace has been devastating financially and emotionally. “I didn’t do anything wrong,” said Jackson, adding that the worst part was the strain on his wife, family and employees at his business, Aesthetics in Jewelry.”

Sounds like the right result to me. Sometimes the deal we make in the morning doesn’t look so good at night–that doesn’t mean the seller committed fraud. Buyer beware.

hans