A certified class action lawsuit has been filed against gym owners, John and Helen Captain, alleging breach of contract for lifetime memberships. The lawsuit was filed in Knox County on behalf of long-term gym members.
More than 2,500 people were granted lifetime renewal memberships in the late 1980s and early 1990s by then-owner Long Health. The company went broke in the early 1990s and Court South was sold to Joe Hollingsworth, who agreed to honor both lifetime memberships and renewal rates. The Captain's purchased Court South in 2005. They agreed to honor "true" lifetime memberships, but failed to honor lifetime renewal memberships. Under those contracts, members paid a slightly higher upfront price for membership for the right to renew each year at a much lower fixed rate. Those rates ranged from $10 to $100 per year.
