By Brett Barrouquere

Law360 (May 28, 2021, 12:04 PM EDT ) Georgia staffing company Insight Global LLC is asking a court to invalidate the $735,000 cancellation fee a Florida hotel charged it after halting a January conference the company said would have been a "super-spreader" COVID-19 event.

More than 2,200 people were set up to attend the long-scheduled event from 60 cities across the U.S. and Canada, Insight Global said in the suit, filed May 25 in the Georgia State-wide Business Court. It says despite many attempts to cancel, reschedule or restructure the event to accommodate COVID-19 safety protocols, Orlando World Center Marriott refused to call it off or work with the company to improve safety for attendees.

The hotel insisted it could stage the conference and subsequently charged Insight Global a $735,000 cancellation fee, according to the lawsuit.

"All of the meetings were scheduled for rooms that could not accommodate six-foot social distancing for the anticipated number of attendees, and substantially all of the food service was to be by buffet or similar open service that was now both unsafe and unlawful," Insight Global said.

Insight Global is seeking a judgment that it doesn't owe the hotel the cancellation fees and claims breach of contract and unfair and deceptive trade practices by the hotel. It is also seeking the return of its $40,000 deposit.

Insight Global scheduled the conference in 2019, nearly a year before COVID-19 hit American shores. As the pandemic took hold, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis issued an executive order on March 1, 2020, instituting standards for social distancing at gatherings, limiting indoor occupancy at food establishments to 25% of building occupancy, and prohibiting buffets, salad bars, and drink stations.

Mayor Jerry Demins of Orange County, Florida, where Orlando is, followed suit 12 days later.

Insight Global said it expected the hotel to readily agree to cancel the annual conference, which the company holds to allow employees from around North America to network and take part in activities and group meetings.

The hotel insisted the conference go on, Insight Global said. That spurred requests from Insight Global for ways to modify the conference and services offered to comply with health and safety requirements, according to the lawsuit.

Hotel officials refused to engage on the issue and instead demanded that Insight Global pay the $735,000 cancellation penalty, according to the lawsuit.

Insight Global, which has 60 offices across 33 states plus Washington, D.C., and two Canadian provinces, said it sought to rebook the conference, but was rebuffed by the hotel which said the proposed dates were unavailable.

Insight Global said it concluded holding the conference at the hotel would have been "recklessly dangerous," and said it asked multiple times to talk to the hotel's legal counsel about the issue, but to no avail.

"Instead, the hotel's sales team used threats of grossly excessive cancellation penalties and litigation by the hotel against Insight Global in strongarm sales tactics to attempt to coerce Insight Global into rebooking on a future date that did not meet Insight Global's business needs," the staffing company said.

After being told in writing that the cancellation penalty violated Florida law, the hotel still refused to put the staffing company in touch with its legal counsel and continued to issue threats, Insight Global said.

Counsel for Orlando World Center Marriott was not available Friday. Counsel for Insight Global did not immediately return messages seeking comment.

Insight Global LLC is represented by Stephen M. Parham and Andrea Pearson of Bloom Parham LLP.

Counsel information for Orlando World Center Marriott was not available.

The case is Insight Global LLC v. John Doe Company, dba Orlando World Center Marriott, case number 21-GSBC-0017, in the Georgia State-wide Business Court.

--Editing by Alyssa Miller.

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