LEGAL FILE

Suits & Countersuits: Gloria Estefan and the Miami Sound Machine have filed a lawsuit against their former agents for $1.5 million after being removed from the lineup of last year’s Amnesty International concert tour. The suit, filed in U.S. District Court, says the group rejected offers for $500,000 in appearances and recording sessions to clear their schedule for the tour, before the Los Angeles-based firm of Moress-Nanas canceled their engagement at the last minute. The suit also is seeking $1 million in punitive damages. Philip Ryan, Moress-Nanas’ attorney, called the suit “a joke.” He said the group was dropped from the tour when Bruce Springsteen wanted to perform 90-minute sets instead of the 20 minutes originally planned. Ryan claimed that the real issue is the nearly $1 million the group owes their former agents. Moress-Nanas already had filed a suit in Federal Court accusing the Sound Machine of failing to pay $750,000 in management fees and $200,000 for the agency’s work in securing a $2-million CBS record deal.