That's Stamos Arakas of Posy Floral Design Studios, commenting on a lawsuit by Elana Elbogen, nee Glatt, an attorney at Kelley Drye in New York. The W$J Law Blog flagged the story, which appeared in the NYT and NY Post. According to the NYT,

The bride, Elana Glatt, says her florist committed a series of faux pas at her wedding on Aug. 11. In the most "egregious," Ms. Glatt says in a lawsuit alleging breach of contract, the florist substituted pastel pink and green hydrangeas for the dark rust and green hydrangeas she had specified for 22 centerpieces.

...

Not only was the color wrong, Ms. Glatt said in the lawsuit, filed on Friday in State Supreme Court in Manhattan, but the hydrangeas were wilted and brown, and arranged in dusty vases without enough water.

Their pastel colors clashed with the linens, favor boxes, wedding cake and décor at Cipriani 42nd Street, the luxurious restaurant where she and her husband, David, held their reception, Ms. Glatt said.

Of course, stories like this always have two sides. According to the Post,

Posy owners Paula and Stamos Arakas were stunned by the suit.

"I can't believe this. I put my heart and soul into this wedding," a teary-eyed Paula told The Post.

Stamos blamed the "completely unwarranted" suit on Glatt's lawyer bride, Elana. "She's being a Bridezilla," he fumed, claiming that Elana would order elaborate arrangements that her future mother-in-law, who was paying for the flowers, would then trim down.

"They sent us 200, 250 e-mails changing things up until the last minute. We did everything they wanted," he said.

The cost of the flowers: $27,435.14.
Estimated damages: $400,000.00.

The damage issue is the interesting one. According to the Post account, the complaint alleges that the floral flub caused the plaintiffs "extreme disappointment, distress and embarrassment." Assuming the florists did not commit a tort, should the plaintiffs receive such damages?

New York courts sometimes award damages for emotional distress or embarrassment as a remedy for breach of contract. For example, in 1998 the City Court of the City of Yonkers awarded $500.00 for the "disappointment, humiliation and annoyance" suffered by the bride when her preferred wedding singer didn't show and was replaced by an inadequate substitute. In a section of the opinion entitled "Weddings Are Special," the court reasoned:

Weddings are unique and, hopefully, once in a lifetime events. Equally important is the wedding reception where family and friends celebrate and congratulate the newly married couple. Notwithstanding some judicial skepticism, brides, grooms and parents spend extraordinary sums and expect the wedding and the reception to be magical and memorable in every respect. Generally, the Courts agree.

At any rate, the allegations in this latest case should not be hard to prove. With 22 centerpieces, there must be plenty of witnesses.

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