[size=14pt]Tom Hicks and George Gillett will not seek damages from Liverpool FC or new owners Fenway Sports Group[/size]
by David Bartlett, Liverpool Daily Post
Dec 8 2011
THE spectre of a multi-million pound lawsuit no longer hangs over Liverpool FC from former owners Tom Hicks and George Gillett, it can be revealed today.
In a statement to the Daily Post, the former owners have declared for the first time they are not interested in pursuing new owners Fenway Sports Group.
Instead, their latest legal action in the High Court seeks damages from former Liverpool FC directors Sir Martin Broughton and Christian Purslow, current managing director Ian Ayre and the Royal Bank of Scotland for agreeing to the sale.
The trio were former directors of Kop Football (Holdings) Limited, the company used by Hicks and Gillett to control the football club.
Hicks has always maintained that the club was sold for £300m against his will in an “epic swindle”.
In a statement, Hicks’s representatives said: “Tom Hicks and George Gillett are pursuing claims for damages and compensation against RBS and former directors of Kop Football (Holdings) Limited Sir Martin Broughton, Christian Purslow and Ian Ayre.
“They are not bringing any action against the club and the club is not a party to the legal proceedings.
“A claim for £1bn was made in the past. That claim was made in legal proceedings in Texas that were discontinued last October in accordance with an Order of the High Court.”
No claim for £1bn has been made in the UK and the damages being sought in the UK are yet to be quantified.
While the club may not be directly in the firing line, the court case remains a huge off-field distraction.
The Daily Post understands that the club, RBS, Sir Martin, Mr Ayre, and Mr Purslow are confident they have a strong case and the court will not find any wrongdoing.
The disclosure by Hicks and Gillett comes after they filed accounts for the companies that formerly controlled the Reds.
Kop Football Holdings and Kop Football Limited were holding companies used by the pair to control events at Anfield , through a complex set up.
The accounts for the year ended in July, 2010, offer mainly a historical snap shot of the huge debts piled onto Liverpool FC by Hicks and Gillett.
At the time, Kop Football Limited owed a total of £400m.
Unsurprisingly, auditors KPMG were unable to confirm that the companies can continue as a going concern due to the main asset – LFC – having been sold at a “substantial loss”.
In a report from the directors of the companies, it states that they have not been able to file full financial statements “due to the unusual circumstances surrounding the sale of the club.
“The directors have been communicating with the club over the course of the past year to obtain information required to complete group accounts.
“As of the date of this report (November 23), sufficient information has not been received for the directors to accept responsibility for the inclusion of club information that would be required in group accounts.”
The fact the pair have seen fit to file the accounts and not merely wind up the companies should be seen as sign of their resolve to secure damages.
A spokesman for Hicks said: “Kop Football Ltd and Kop Football Holdings Ltd have not been wound-up due to ongoing legal matters.”
The address listed for the companies is that of London solicitors Clyde and Co, who are specialists in dispute resolution.
Both companies are ultimately controlled by US registered Kop Investment LLC, which files accounts in the state of Delawar,e where they do not have to be publicly disclosed.
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