A StubHub customer has lost his bid to pursue a proposed class action over CEO Eric Baker’s ties to Andro Capital, a professional ticket-resale fund, after a federal judge ruled that clicking “Buy Now” bound him to the platform’s arbitration terms.
U.S. District Judge Jed S. Rakoff said Monday that StubHub gave customer Louis Sanquini sufficiently clear notice of the arbitration requirement before he completed his ticket purchases. His claims against both StubHub and Baker must now proceed individually through private arbitration, while the federal lawsuit remains stayed.
Immediately above StubHub’s purchase button, customers were told that clicking it meant accepting the company’s terms and conditions, according to the opinion. The linked agreement warned U.S. customers that covered disputes generally must be resolved through binding arbitration and cannot be pursued as a class or representative action.
“Sanquini unambiguously manifested his assent by clicking the ‘Buy Now’ button to complete his transactions,” Rakoff wrote. Sanquini had argued that the provision should not prevent his proposed nationwide class action, but the judge found that the checkout page provided sufficiently conspicuous notice of the terms. Rakoff also noted that Sanquini did not claim to have used the agreement’s 30-day option to reject arbitration.
The decision does not address whether Sanquini’s allegations against StubHub and Baker are true. Rakoff first ordered the dispute into arbitration Sept. 14 and stayed the case, with Monday’s opinion explaining the basis for that ruling.
Sanquini sued in July after buying tickets through StubHub, including seats for a KISS concert at Madison Square Garden. His complaint alleges that he would not have used the platform had he known Baker also held an ownership interest in Andro Capital, a professional reseller that sells tickets through StubHub.
Baker has also served as Andro’s managing partner, according to StubHub’s securities filings. The company has disclosed that Andro has operated on the platform since 2008, while Sanquini alleges the business generated more than $5 million in proceeds through StubHub beginning in 2022.
His lawsuit accuses StubHub of presenting itself to customers as a neutral marketplace connecting ticket buyers and sellers while failing to adequately disclose Baker’s financial interest in a professional reseller using the same platform.
StubHub has pointed to its public securities filings as evidence that Baker’s relationship with Andro was disclosed. The company has also described Andro as one of many sellers using its marketplace and said the business represents a small share of its overall operations.
Rakoff also concluded that Baker could enforce the arbitration agreement even though he was not personally a party to Sanquini’s customer contract. The judge cited Baker’s close relationship with StubHub and the fact that the lawsuit brings the same underlying claims against both the CEO and the company.
Sanquini separately argued that StubHub’s arbitration terms were unfair or unenforceable. Rakoff rejected that challenge, noting that customers had 30 days to opt out and that the agreement required StubHub to provide advance notice of changes to its terms.
Under StubHub’s agreement, covered customers must pursue their claims separately before an arbitrator rather than a judge or jury. The ruling prevents Sanquini from litigating his proposed nationwide class case in court while leaving his underlying consumer claims for arbitration.
Sanquini’s attorney, Keven Steinberg, has said he intends to continue pursuing the allegations and suggested StubHub could face individual arbitration claims from other customers rather than one consolidated case. The federal lawsuit will remain stayed while Sanquini’s arbitration proceeds.
