Liverpool's former owners, Tom Hicks and George Gillett, have dropped a lawsuit filed just hours earlier claiming up to $1.6bn (£1bn) in damages over the contentious sale of the club, but said they will return to fight in the British law courts.
Liverpool said the club would be insulated from the effects of any lawsuit, which would have to be aimed at the named directors of the holding company that was dissolved yesterday once the deal went through, or at Royal Bank of Scotland.
After losing their battle to hold on to Liverpool FC, the attorney Tom Melsheimer said that Hicks and Gillett were dropping the claim in order to comply with this week's high court order.
But he said "a different picture will be painted" when the English court "has a chance to hear all the facts", indicating that the duo are prepared to fight on in their belief that the club's directors and its principal lender, RBS, conspired against the pair to sell the club for less than its true market value to New England Sports Ventures.
"We believe that it is appropriate to go back to court in England and seek relief from what we think is an unfair and over-broad order that had been entered without the benefit of a full hearing of both sides," he added. Melsheimer said the ruling on Thursday had taken place without legal representation from Hicks and Gillett and they wanted their view to be put to the high court.
"We want to be present and be heard. I think the court will realise that its original order is over-broad and unfair," he said.
"The fact remains, I don't think any judge in England or anywhere has had a chance to hear both sides of the story, We know the court have no interest in being unfair," he said. Some legal experts believe they could yet have a case, while questioning the size of the claim.
"If they can prove that the club was sold for less than its worth then they have a strong case. Proving the value of the club is intrinsically difficult. It is a particular expertise and difficult to accurately quantify," Danny Davis, a partner and football finance expert at Mishcon de Reya, said. "The $1.6bn they are seeking will, however, be significantly reduced to something more in line with the actual difference in sale price and value, if proven. Having mismanaged the situation legally won't help their chances either."
The decision to withdraw the claim came about two hours after the £300m sale of the club to the owners of the Boston Red Sox was finalized in London. That came after Hicks and Gillett dropped a temporary restraining order blocking the sale that had been obtained in a Texas court.
But even as they dropped the petition on the orders of a high court judge – who said the case had little to do with Texas and ruled they had failed to disclose the fact that they had recently lost a similar action in a UK court – Hicks and Gillett launched one final assault on the chairman, Martin Broughton, and the sale process.
"It's an extraordinary swindle and it will result in exactly the wrong thing for the club and the fans," said attorneys acting for the pair. "This outcome not only devalues the club but it also will result in long-term uncertainty for the fans, players and everyone who loves this sport because all legal recourses will be pursued," Steve Stodghill, the Texas attorney representing the former owners, said.
Hicks, who failed in a last-ditch bid to transfer his share of the club to the investment fund Mill Financial and so derail the sale, said: "This was a conspiracy of the British establishment, Royal Bank of Scotland, our chairman [Martin Broughton] and our highly compensated employees."
Following the completion of the sale, Liverpool moved to reassure supporters that the club would not be liable for any further legal claims. "If Hicks and Gillett pursue the legal route it would be an action against the English directors of Kop Holdings [which has now been dissolved] and/or RBS. There is no exposure for Liverpool FC," said a spokesman.
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