Rihanna is one of the world’s biggest stars and one of the top earners in the entertainment world, but it looks like her riches may not be as much as people would think, thanks to some money-grubbing former accountants.
According to the Huffington Post, Rihanna has filed a lawsuit against New York-based Berdon LLP and two accountants seeking unspecified damages.
Rihanna says she hired the accountants in 2005 when she was just a 16-year-old launching her career. In the lawsuit, which was filed on July 5 in a Manhattan court, the star alleges that Berdon drained tens of millions of dollars from revenues, while she launched four national and international tours over the course of five years.
Apparently, the defendants engaged in the unusual practice of paying themselves commissions on revenues and by the 2009 “Last Girl on Earth” tour, Rihanna learned that her tour had suffered “significant net losses” despite major revenues. Berndon allegedly pocketed 22 percent of the revenues, while Rihanna only earned six percent of her own tour revenues.
The lawsuit alleges that the defendant’s practice of paying itself left them no incentive to “counsel” Rihanna on expense reductions or financial controls.
The lawsuit also blamed the defendants for an ongoing IRS audit of her tax returns.
Rihanna eventually fired the accounting firm in 2010 and with her “Loud” tour she was able to produce a net profit equal to more than 40 percent of total tour revenues.
Well, we’re glad that Rihanna is recovering her lost revenues, but she’s not the only star to lose money because of bad management. Check out some other stars swindled out of their money from lawyers, accountants and record deals. – nicholas robinson
