In an important win for Equity members in Northern Ireland, Antrim small claims court has upheld a group of members' right to be paid when their work over Halloween was cancelled at short notice. Equity took the case on behalf of 7 members and says the outcome is an important reminder to engagers that they should not “try to shirk their responsibility for paying artists’ fees”.
This dispute was brought by a group of freelance workers who were booked by engager the Hedges Hotel in October 2025 to provide several nights of ‘fright night’ style performances during the Halloween season. Actors were informed on very short notice that the entire event was cancelled. The event subsequently went ahead in a different format, setting out that no actors would be used.
Our members had not been paid for their rehearsal time and did not receive any payment for their loss of work. Their claim was for full payment of all expected fees, and this was awarded through the Antrim Courts to each and every claimant – making a total outcome of over £6,000.
To date, the engager has still not paid its debts to the artists, meaning that seven notices of Enforcement of Judgement Order have been provided to the court. Equity will pursue this claim until our members receive their court ordered payments.
Engagers need to learn that they are working with professionals who do not bear the same loss burden if an event is cancelled.
Alice Adams Lemon, Equity Official for Northern Ireland
We continue to win for our members – it is clear: if work is agreed upon for a specific date and time, and no cancellation clause or notice period is included, the engager bears the risk of cancellation.
Alice Adams Lemon, Equity Official for Northern Ireland, said: "This outcome demonstrates another hard-fought win for our members and another court case to point to when explaining to engagers that they can’t cancel events and simply expect performers to lose out on fees.
“Engagers need to learn that they are working with professionals who do not bear the same loss burden if an event is cancelled. They must not try to shirk their responsibility for paying artists’ fees – just as they refund audiences, they must pay their contracted artists.
“Yet again our members show they can and will stand up for fair treatment – and when they do, they win.”
The best course of action is always to have cancellation terms spelled out in your booking. For advice on cancellation clauses and making your own contract, find our full guide here: Making your own contract | Equity
Takeaway for Members:
If you're booked for work and the engager cancels—especially at the last minute—even if there’s no cancellation clause in the agreement, you may be entitled to payment. Keep records and get in touch with your union rep if this happens to you.
For a previous similar case see Equity victory in Laganside small claims court .
