lɐuǝɯo⊥ǝɥԀ
10-13-2010, 08:09 PM
Tom Hicks and George Gillett have failed in their High Court attempt to wrest back control of Liverpool.
The unpopular American co-owners had tried to oust the boardroom rivals that had sanctioned the sale of the club to New England Sports Ventures (NESV).
But Mr Justice Floyd ruled they did not have the power to do so.
The decision means the sale to NESV can proceed, although club chairman Martin Broughton hinted rival bids may now be considered at a meeting on Wednesday.
"I am absolutely elated, it's a very important day for our club," said Broughton as he left the Royal Courts of Justice in London.
"This will clear the way for the sale, we will have a board meeting this evening and proceed with the sale.
"It has been an anxious time but we have been confident. But when you go to court you can never be sure."
He declined to confirm that NESV, owners of the Boston Red Sox, would be the new owners.
He said: "The board has to be reconstituted and I can't prejudge what the board is going to say. It would be inappropriate to prejudge what the board may say.
"But the club's going to have a great future. We will re-establish the right basis for the club.
"The acquisition debt that has been plaguing us will be gone, we have a great future. We will get the right owners for the fans."
John W Henry, who heads the NESV consortium, celebrated the High Court verdict through his Twitter account and praised Broughton managing director Christian Purslow and commercial director Ian Ayre.
Henry wrote: "Well done Martin, Christian & Ian. Well done RBS. Well done supporters!"
NESV said in a statement that it had a "binding agreement in place with the Board of Liverpool FC".
It went on: "We are ready to move quickly and help create the stability and certainty which the club needs at this time. It is time to return the focus to the club itself and performances on the pitch."
NESV is thought to be offering about £300m for the club, enough to pay back the £240m of loans and £40m of fees owed to Royal Bank of Scotland. Its bid has been accepted in principle by the club.
But in recent days another bid has materialised, with Singapore billionaire Peter Lim offering £320m in cash for the club and its liabilities. He is also willing to provide £40m in cash to buy players.
Following Wednesday's High Court ruling, Lim issued a statement outlining his plans.
"I welcome the decision of the court," it read. "I hope that when the board is reconstituted tonight that it will not simply ratify a sale to NESV but will consider all the offers before them.
"I am asking the board to run a full and fair process that enables all of the offers to be considered on their merits before the future of the club is decided.
"I have delivered my offer to the board and believe that my ownership represents the best option for the future of the club and its supporters."
American hedge fund Mill Financial has a bid that also pledges to wipe out Liverpool's debts while providing up to £100m to fund a new stadium.
Mill Financial technically controls Gillett's 50% stake after he defaulted on the loan used by the American to fund his part of the leveraged takeover in 2007.
It is up to Broughton and his fellow board members to decide which bid to run with now they have won their High Court tussle.
Hicks and Gillett had wanted an injunction to halt the sale negotiations but Mr Justice Floyd rejected the applications.
"I am not prepared to grant any relief," he said. "If I did it would risk stopping the sale and purchase agreement going ahead."
He added that it would be "inappropriate in the circumstances" for him to grant Hicks and Gillett the right to appeal and they would have to apply to the Court of Appeal for permission.
Keith Oliver, a solicitor acting for Hicks and Gillett, stated: "We are obviously disappointed with the judge's decision. Mr Hicks and Mr Gillett will now be considering their next steps and that will include whether to make an application to the Court of Appeal."
There were chaotic scenes outside the courts in central London, with more than 100 Liverpool fans surrounding Broughton and singing: "We love you, Martin, we do."
Security guards tried and failed to move the crowd blocking the entrance as they broke into the Liverpool anthem You'll Never Walk Alone.
On Tuesday, the judge heard how Hicks had tried to block the sale to NESV last week by removing Purslow and Ayre from the board.
He had then installed his son, Mack, and business associate Lori McCutcheon so he would have control of voting on the board.
But this was in breach of agreements the Americans had signed with the bank when RBS extended its credit facilities.
The RBS loan facility ends on Friday and the bank had applied to the court for the injunction to allow the sale to go ahead and recoup its money.
Liverpool said in a statement: "We are delighted that the court has clarified the issue of board composition and has removed the uncertainty around the sale process.
"We will now be consulting with our lawyers and planning for a board meeting tonight. A further statement will be made in due course."
BBC SPORT
The unpopular American co-owners had tried to oust the boardroom rivals that had sanctioned the sale of the club to New England Sports Ventures (NESV).
But Mr Justice Floyd ruled they did not have the power to do so.
The decision means the sale to NESV can proceed, although club chairman Martin Broughton hinted rival bids may now be considered at a meeting on Wednesday.
"I am absolutely elated, it's a very important day for our club," said Broughton as he left the Royal Courts of Justice in London.
"This will clear the way for the sale, we will have a board meeting this evening and proceed with the sale.
"It has been an anxious time but we have been confident. But when you go to court you can never be sure."
He declined to confirm that NESV, owners of the Boston Red Sox, would be the new owners.
He said: "The board has to be reconstituted and I can't prejudge what the board is going to say. It would be inappropriate to prejudge what the board may say.
"But the club's going to have a great future. We will re-establish the right basis for the club.
"The acquisition debt that has been plaguing us will be gone, we have a great future. We will get the right owners for the fans."
John W Henry, who heads the NESV consortium, celebrated the High Court verdict through his Twitter account and praised Broughton managing director Christian Purslow and commercial director Ian Ayre.
Henry wrote: "Well done Martin, Christian & Ian. Well done RBS. Well done supporters!"
NESV said in a statement that it had a "binding agreement in place with the Board of Liverpool FC".
It went on: "We are ready to move quickly and help create the stability and certainty which the club needs at this time. It is time to return the focus to the club itself and performances on the pitch."
NESV is thought to be offering about £300m for the club, enough to pay back the £240m of loans and £40m of fees owed to Royal Bank of Scotland. Its bid has been accepted in principle by the club.
But in recent days another bid has materialised, with Singapore billionaire Peter Lim offering £320m in cash for the club and its liabilities. He is also willing to provide £40m in cash to buy players.
Following Wednesday's High Court ruling, Lim issued a statement outlining his plans.
"I welcome the decision of the court," it read. "I hope that when the board is reconstituted tonight that it will not simply ratify a sale to NESV but will consider all the offers before them.
"I am asking the board to run a full and fair process that enables all of the offers to be considered on their merits before the future of the club is decided.
"I have delivered my offer to the board and believe that my ownership represents the best option for the future of the club and its supporters."
American hedge fund Mill Financial has a bid that also pledges to wipe out Liverpool's debts while providing up to £100m to fund a new stadium.
Mill Financial technically controls Gillett's 50% stake after he defaulted on the loan used by the American to fund his part of the leveraged takeover in 2007.
It is up to Broughton and his fellow board members to decide which bid to run with now they have won their High Court tussle.
Hicks and Gillett had wanted an injunction to halt the sale negotiations but Mr Justice Floyd rejected the applications.
"I am not prepared to grant any relief," he said. "If I did it would risk stopping the sale and purchase agreement going ahead."
He added that it would be "inappropriate in the circumstances" for him to grant Hicks and Gillett the right to appeal and they would have to apply to the Court of Appeal for permission.
Keith Oliver, a solicitor acting for Hicks and Gillett, stated: "We are obviously disappointed with the judge's decision. Mr Hicks and Mr Gillett will now be considering their next steps and that will include whether to make an application to the Court of Appeal."
There were chaotic scenes outside the courts in central London, with more than 100 Liverpool fans surrounding Broughton and singing: "We love you, Martin, we do."
Security guards tried and failed to move the crowd blocking the entrance as they broke into the Liverpool anthem You'll Never Walk Alone.
On Tuesday, the judge heard how Hicks had tried to block the sale to NESV last week by removing Purslow and Ayre from the board.
He had then installed his son, Mack, and business associate Lori McCutcheon so he would have control of voting on the board.
But this was in breach of agreements the Americans had signed with the bank when RBS extended its credit facilities.
The RBS loan facility ends on Friday and the bank had applied to the court for the injunction to allow the sale to go ahead and recoup its money.
Liverpool said in a statement: "We are delighted that the court has clarified the issue of board composition and has removed the uncertainty around the sale process.
"We will now be consulting with our lawyers and planning for a board meeting tonight. A further statement will be made in due course."
BBC SPORT