Cedar Point not on hook for abbreviated 2020 season
COLUMBUS — The owner of Cedar Point does not have to reimburse season pass holders for the two months the amusement park’s rides were silenced during the early days of the coronavirus pandemic in 2020, the Ohio Supreme Court unanimously held Thursday.
The court found that the shutdown was beyond Cedar Fair’s control and did not amount to a breach of contract, as one of its Gold Pass-holders argued, the court said.
“This case requires us to apply the terms and conditions that [Laura] Valentine agreed to when she purchased a 2020 season pass from Cedar Fair,” Justice Sharon Kennedy wrote. “And, according to those terms, Cedar Fair could change its dates of operation without advance notice and close rides and attractions ‘for weather or other conditions,’ including the governmentmandated shutdown.”
The ruling reverses a decision by the Toledo-based Sixth District Court of Appeals, which sided with Ms. Valentine, of Mayfield Heights in deciding that the pass was both a revocable license and a contract against which a breach claim could be made.
The decision could have had implications for the park far beyond the season pass that she purchased for 2020.
Ms. Valentine argued that she and other seasonholders like her were entitled to pro-rated refunds for those two months. She argued that Cedar Fair was unjustly enriched by not issuing the refunds, despite the fact that it extended the life of the passes through the 2021 season.
The Supreme Court agreed with Cedar Fair that the Gold Pass she purchased was a revocable license, the terms of which could change without notice.
“Even if we assume it is true that Cedar Fair’s season regularly runs from May through October, that would not mean that Cedar Fair was contractually bound to open its parks in May 2020,” Justice Kennedy wrote, noting the terms spelled out on the back of the pass.
“Cedar Fair therefore reserved the right to adjust its dates of operation for any reason and there is no question that Ohio’s government-mandated shutdown during the COVID-19 pandemic was a condition that required Cedar Fair to close its parks for approximately two months,” she wrote.
The Sandusky lakefront park opened in July, 2020, after Ohio lifted its order that kept it shuttered during the state’s gradual re-emergence from the lockdown. Shutdown orders for large gathering places like amusement parks and casinos were among the last to be lifted, and Cedar Fair had gone to court to challenge the state health director’s authority to keep its parks shuttered.
“Here, Valentine received the benefit of her bargain, even if the 2020 season was shorter than she expected it would be when she purchased the season pass,” Justice Kennedy wrote.
A separate class-action case is pending in U.S. District Court in Toledo in connection with Cedar Fair’s Knott’s Berry Farm in Buena Park, Calif., which was closed for more than a year.
“Cedar Fair is pleased with the decision by the Ohio Supreme Court and believe it is the right result.” said Justin Harris, national counsel for Cedar Fair. But he said he couldn’t comment further given the federal litigation is still pending.
During arguments before the Supreme Court in May, Cedar Fair’s Toledo attorney, David R. Hudson, likened the situation to the park having to temporarily close for unforeseen circumstances like a tornado or water break.
“If they’re entitled to close for those conditions, then most certainly they’re entitled to close for the greatest health pandemic that we’ve seen during our lifetimes,” he said.
Ms. Valentine’s attorney, Nicole Fiorelli, had argued in court that her client had lived up to her side of the bargain.
“Breach of contract doesn’t look at whose fault it was or whether there was good faith,” she said. “The fact is that she contracted for those two months, and she was not provided those two months.”