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A matchmaking service founded by two sisters who have appeared in the media promoting their approach to helping single people find love is being sued by a client who says she was promised marriage in exchange for a $20,000 fee.
Gena Wang is the plaintiff in the case, which was filed in Los Angeles Superior Court. The defendants are Matchmakers in the City, the Beverly Hills service, and its two sibling creators, Alessandra Conti and Cristina Conti Pineda. On Tuesday, Judge William Highberger denied a joint motion to seal the settlement amount reached to resolve the dispute.
The judge's clerk cited a section of the California Rules of Court in a minute order. The clerk wrote that Wang's attorney "needs to disclose the terms ... under oath in public filing." Because the settlement includes dismissal of the lawsuit's never-certified class-action allegations, the court must approve the resolution under a section of the California Rules of Court.
In their joint court papers, the attorneys stated that the Los Angeles matchmaking market is "small and competitive" and that a published settlement figure would signal to prospective clients and competitors what the company will pay to resolve disputes before trial.
