Attorney gives advice on refunds for canceled events after venue files for bankruptcy

A New Jersey golf and country club had promised refunds for events canceled due to the pandemic. But now it's decided to file for bankruptcy - bad news for those who planned events there as well as everyone who had paid for memberships.
News 12 spoke last month to Nora Green, whose daughter's Sweet 16 had been scheduled at the Sea Oaks Country Club in Little Egg Harbor. The family didn't want to reschedule. Sea Oaks had promised News 12 that it would give Green a refund.
"My daughter isn't interested at this point," says Green. "She's already 16. She doesn't want to have a Sweet 16 a year from now."
News 12 spoke to an attorney about what Green and others like her can do now that Sea Oaks is filing for bankruptcy.
"Bankruptcy usually is the end of the game for most situations," says attorney Craig Kimmel, of the Kimmel & Silverman law firm.
Kimmel says when a business declares bankruptcy, customers need to work together if they want to get even a partial refund.
"The more of you there are who are speaking as one, the more likely it is that an amount money, if available, is going to be put aside for satisfying part of those claims," says Kimmel.
Kimmel says the Greens may have a better chance at a refund now depending on how they paid for their deposit.
"Most credit card companies do have an exemption for a claim back for any services that are no longer offered, and if a company has declared bankruptcy, obviously the services are no longer going to be offered," says Kimmel.