If your contract says you’ll provide notice of modifications, then you can’t modify without notice

A class action in the Southern District of New York, Pisarri v. Town Sports International, No. 18 Civ. 1737 (LLS) (behind paywall), has breach of contract claims that survived a motion to dismiss based on the notice requirement to make modifications. The class action has been brought on behalf of a number of members of a chain of gyms. The contract between the gyms and their members stated that the gyms could modify the contract at any time but it also stated that the gyms would notify members of any modifications. The members alleged that they were not notified of the modifications to the contract. This was a plausible allegation of breach of contract and so survived the motion. 

However, the members’ other breach of contract claim based on the gyms’ revocation of their memberships did not survive. The contract allowed the gyms to revoke membership at any time if it was in the gyms’ best interest. The court concluded that it was well within the gyms’ best interest to revoke the memberships of people who were suing them. Since the members had other gym alternatives available to them, the court found the gyms’ actions reasonable and dismissed this breach of contract claim. 

(Previous decisions on the preliminary injunction in this case can be found here, and the complaint is here. Some additional stories on the case are here and here.)