RoboCCFC90
Well-Known Member
Sisu are suing a Charity? Alan Higgs Trust..
reason?it's there sisu are sueing the alan higgs trust.
reason?
Two of the key players in the Ricoh Arena saga have locked horns in a new legal battle.
The Alan Edward Higgs Charity and Coventry City’s owners Sisu are in the midst of court wrangle which could result in a hefty payout for either side.
Sources have confirmed the two warring parties are going head to head after the charity put in a claim against the club’s owners for expenses incurred during negotiations back in 2012.
The negotiations centred on the club’s attempt to purchase the charity’s stake in Arena Coventry Limited (ACL) - a joint venture company between the Higgs Charity and Coventry City Council which operates the Ricoh Arena.
The charity’s claim is based on a negotiation clause which stated that if talks broke down the club would cover the charity’s costs accrued as part of the process - believed to be in the region of £30,000.
However, the club has defended the claim and has launched a counter-claim against the charity - believed to be in the region of six figures.
Club bosses believe the charity must shoulder the blame for negotiations breaking down with the council after ACL and the city council agreed a deal which saw the council effectively become ACL’s mortgage lenders by buying the stadium company’s bank debt from Yorkshire Bank for £14million.
Club sources maintain that Sisu paying off the debt was a key part of the discussions and that the club was forced out of a potential deal as a result of the council stepping in.
The club’s counter-claim appears to rest on their assertion that charity bosses - as joint stakeholders in ACL - must have been party to discussions about a deal with the council; and therefore responsible for the breakdown in negotiations.
The reason for the vast difference between the charity and the football club’s claims is put down to the club’s owners incurring higher costs due to being the pro-active party as the buyer in negotiations.
Both claims are believed to cover items such as legal fees, officials’ time and other administrative costs.
Peter Knatchbull-Hugessen, clerk of the Higgs Charity, said: “Trustees have a responsibility to ensure that monies owed are returned to the charity.”
The £14m bank debt deal between ACL, Yorkshire Bank and the council will be the subject of a judicial review in the coming months after club owners claimed the deal constituted illegal state aid.
Timings of this sue and counter sue seems off to me my understanding was:
SISU made enquiries to buy the alan higgs share of ACL so clause in the contract that SISU would cover the cost should these negotiations breakdown...
SISU having seen the books then stopped paying rent to distress ACL this then caused yorkshire bank to ask for the money back and CCC bought out the loan
SISU are now saying that CCC buying out the loan was what broke the negotiations???
AM i missing something?
Timings of this sue and counter sue seems off to me my understanding was:
SISU made enquiries to buy the alan higgs share of ACL so clause in the contract that SISU would cover the cost should these negotiations breakdown...
SISU having seen the books then stopped paying rent to distress ACL this then caused yorkshire bank to ask for the money back and CCC bought out the loan
SISU are now saying that CCC buying out the loan was what broke the negotiations???
AM i missing something?
sisu don't do discussion.Sisu were also in discussions to buy out the ACL loan....
sisu don't do discussion.
Am I missing something here....
Was it not the charity who caused the negotiations to break down when they did the deal with CCC paying the debt off?
If that is the case, why should SISU pay out?
Sisu were also in discussions to buy out the ACL loan....
As I've said before...SISU will NEVER pay what they owe to anybody..F**king Scum!
Can't wait to hear Labovich on CWR trying to explain his way out of this one.
All very well and it is indeed disheartening as it just means one more shitty strand in this mess. I am struggling to put into context as to what, if any, impact this has on...
1. Ability to get some new players in during Jan
2. Likelihood of a City home match ever taking place in a CV postcode again
3. Leon Clarke starting on Saturday
4. The price of fish