Garth Brooks In Legal Row over Donation Misunderstanding

Country music artists, such as Reba McEntire and Carrie Underwood, to name a few, have all consistently made donations to various institutions whether under their foundations or simple personal gifts. This has been the practice among the more established artists in the scene; Garth Brooks is no exception. However, a recent legal row has shed a controversial light in this practice, threatening to ruin even the artist’s reputation as a do-gooder.

In December 2005, country music superstar Garth Brooks made a handsome donation to Integris Canadian Valley Regional Hospital in his hometown of Yukon, Oklahoma. The main stipulation in the contract was that the hospital management must use the money to build a cancer treatment facility that will be named after Brooks’ mother, Colleen Brooks, who died from cancer in 1999. Now, the artist drew both criticism and support for suing the same hospital for of $500,000 for alleged breach of contract.

In reports aired over CNN affiliate in Oklahoma City, KOKH, the controversial lawsuit has been filed in the District Court of Rogers County, Oklahoma, which basically asks that the donation be returned because the original contract had not been honored by Integris management. According to the original agreement, the donation should have gone to the establishment of a medical facility named after Colleen Brooks. However, although the hospital has undertaken a $27 million dollar renovation, to date, the building is yet to be built and in fact, there are indications that it will not be built at all as originally intended.

The lawsuit mentions that hospital officials showed building models during the preliminary meetings around the time when the donation was made. However, when an inquiry was made, it was found that the management had only informed Brooks in a vague manner that the donation would be “earmarked” for future use. To these allegations, the hospital’s top management is confident that this was just a misunderstanding. Although Crowe and Dunlevy attorney Terry Thomas, who is part of a team representing the hospital, declined to comment further, a spokeswoman for Integris stated that the hospital management was fully “optimistic that it will come to a swift and amicable end.”

Not everyone, however, is in a conciliatory mode. City council member John Tipps said, “Yukon has done a lot to help promote Garth Brooks over the years, and this is what he does to return the favor, sue our hospital over a misunderstanding.” He further told the The Yukon Review, “Maybe Yukon should consider removing his name from the street signs and the water tower. This is very unfortunate for the hospital, City of Yukon and its citizens.”

Due to the controversial nature of the case, country music fans are also divided with regards to the issue. While there are those who believe that Brooks has all the right to sue for breach of contract, there are also those who believe that making a donation should not have entailed stipulations in the first place.

No matter what the public opinion is, Brooks seems to be heartbroken over the whole ordeal. According to Brooks’ spokesperson, “This is deeply personal. This deals with his mother, the hometown and the people he grew up with.” Nevertheless, the singer is apparently determined to do what is right.