A New York event production company is suing fashion designer Aurora James and her nonprofit organization, the Fifteen Percent Pledge, alleging they failed to pay more than $1 million for a star-studded charity gala held earlier this year in Los Angeles. The lawsuit, filed in New York Supreme Court, accuses James and her organization of leaving the small business with the bill after it produced the Fifteen Percent Pledge Gala 2026 at Paramount Studios.
The Gathery Inc., the event organizer behind the February fundraiser, is seeking at least $1,082,965 in damages from James, the Fifteen Percent Pledge, and its fiscal sponsor, Philanthropic Ventures Foundation. The plaintiffs also seek contractually owed interest and additional financial damages. According to court documents, the total bill for the event was approximately $1.5 million. James' nonprofit allegedly made two initial deposits before ceasing all payments in November 2025.
The gala, which was intended to raise money for Black business owners, drew a high-profile attendee list that included Meghan Markle and Kimora Lee Simmons. The Gathery had produced the annual fundraiser in both 2024 and 2025 without issue, according to the lawsuit. The suit alleges that James «personally directed the project and repeatedly induced TGI to continue performing even after payment defaults had begun.» It further claims that James approved change orders expanding the scope and cost of the event, signed a February 4, 2026, amendment admitting breach, and assured the production company that payment would be forthcoming — all while knowing, or recklessly disregarding, that the nonprofit lacked the ability to pay.
James founded the Fifteen Percent Pledge in 2020 in response to the murder of George Floyd. The organization describes itself as a «racial equity and economic justice non-profit organization working toward a more equitable economic future.» Its mission is to encourage retailers to dedicate 15 percent of their storefront shelf space to products created by Black-owned businesses. James is also known for designing the «Tax the Rich» dress worn by Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez at the 2021 Met Gala, an image that became a defining political moment.
The lawsuit is not the first time James has faced allegations of unpaid financial obligations. In 2021, she was reported to have run up tax debts through Cultural Brokerage Agency, the parent company of her Brother Vellies fashion brand. Those reports included three open state tax warrants from 2018 to 2019 totaling $14,798 in unpaid employee withholding, as well as 15 warrants since 2015. The company has also reportedly faced multiple legal claims alleging it repeatedly failed to pay worker benefits.
Legal and political experts noted the apparent contradiction between the nonprofit's mission and the allegations. «These are still allegations that have to be proven in court, but there's an undeniable irony in an organization dedicated to supporting small businesses being accused of stiffing one for more than $1 million,» former Palm Beach County State Attorney Dave Aronberg said. «If you preach economic fairness, you have to practice it too.»
Kaivon Shroff, a former digital organizer for Hillary Clinton's campaign, also pointed to the irony. «AOC made Aurora James's 'Tax the Rich' dress one of the defining political images of the Met Gala and excess wealth at a time of great economic inequality, so the irony here is impossible to miss,» Shroff said. He added that James «built her public brand around economic justice and supporting Black-owned businesses,» yet is now being sued by a small business. «That is exactly the kind of contradiction opponents seize on to argue that the politics are performative,» he said. «Movements built around economic fairness and supporting marginalized businesses are so important, and they depend heavily on credibility and goodwill. When the people most visibly associated with those causes are accused of behaving in ways that seem completely at odds with the message, the damage does not stop with the individual. It gives critics an easy way to discredit the cause itself.»
Fox News Digital reached out to James' attorney for comment but did not immediately receive a response. The lawsuit remains pending in New York Supreme Court.