Bill Power court case

[pauld]

Any idea of when the verdict is expected? Presumably the judge will need time to review it all before passing a verdict?

It's back in court tomorrow at 10:30 and the case is part heard according to the website.

It was showing as part heard at the start of the week as there have already been hearings in the case, this week's is just the latest, although hopefully it will be the final hearing unless there's another adjournment. And no, I don't have any special inside track on this I'm afraid, before anyone asks

[Simon Pieman]

So the evidence suggests the trial wasn't finished at the start of the week and still isn't finished.

[Talk Talk]

Fuck the court case we'll find out soon enough...in the meantime while we're waiting, who remembers those plastic pots, a bit like fake old style beer jugs, that you could take home some ale in when the pub closed at 10:30 ?  Most breweries seemed to have them, I'd hazard someone has a collection somewhere.

I've got a Brakspears Henley Brewery one hanging up in my garage 

I used to have a shedload of them when they were popular (Fullers, Gales, Wethereds, Whitbread, Arkells, Youngs, Morland and so on), the problem was that they went brittle and cracked easily.

[suttonred]

While all this old talk is mighty interesting, does anyone know what happened in the court case?

Fuck the court case we'll find out soon enough...in the meantime while we're waiting, who remembers those plastic pots, a bit like fake old style beer jugs, that you could take home some ale in when the pub closed at 10:30 ?  Most breweries seemed to have them, I'd hazard someone has a collection somewhere.

  There's a couple of pubs in Thatcham that still do those. golden rule is always buy double what you will drink as half of them get dropped on the way home.

[Talk Talk]

There's a couple of pubs in Thatcham that still do those. golden rule is always buy double what you will drink as half of them get dropped on the way home.

Really? Do you know what they have printed on them (brewery)?

[suttonred]

No idea, i've always been worse for wear when purchasing, I'll try and remember to have a look next time i'm down. Dont even remember which pubs due to being tired and emotional! although i think one may be the  old chequers.

[ron dodgers]

not appearing on the commercial court list anymore so I guess it's over - did I miss the article in the adver explaining the outcome?

[Power to people]

not appearing on the commercial court list anymore so I guess it's over - did I miss the article in the adver explaining the outcome?

No, you didn't miss it...they haven't said anything about the court case other than it was due to start...good journalism that

[ron dodgers]

no fucking info then - right I'm going to ask Datasat

[Whits]

No idea, i've always been worse for wear when purchasing, I'll try and remember to have a look next time i'm down. Dont even remember which pubs due to being tired and emotional! although i think one may be the  old chequers.

the old chequers? head down on a saturday and you can take in some karoke...almost ended up there last night in my quest for a random pub crawl!

[pauld]

not appearing on the commercial court list anymore so I guess it's over - did I miss the article in the adver explaining the outcome?

I believe the evidence has all now been heard and the judge has retired to consider it and ponder a verdict. Verdict expected back end of April, I understand, so no outcome to report on as yet

[Power to people]

I believe the evidence has all now been heard and the judge has retired to consider it and ponder a verdict. Verdict expected back end of April, I understand, so no outcome to report on as yet

Retired ?

Fucking 'ell he's got to give a verdict on the case hasn't he ? 

[ron dodgers]

is that what the Adver said Paul?

[deltaincline]

Fitton mentioned the court case in today's program. He said something about wishing that the cunts responsible had sat round a table and sorted the fucking mess out rather than take it to court.

He also said that legal costs could run to about a million quid - which is fucking scary if the club lose the case as any profit we make on Cox and Morrison in the summer could just end up paying for lawyers.

I thought there was some sort of indemnity on the Wills family in place in the event of the court case going tits up on the club. Anyone know?

[pauld]

Fitton mentioned the court case in today's program. He said something about wishing that the cunts responsible had sat round a table and sorted the fucking mess out rather than take it to court.

Although he phrased it rather more elegantly than that.

He also said that legal costs could run to about a million quid - which is fucking scary if the club lose the case as any profit we make on Cox and Morrison in the summer could just end up paying for lawyers.

I thought there was some sort of indemnity on the Wills family in place in the event of the court case going tits up on the club. Anyone know?

I'll answer the second part first as that's the most important bit - yes, the club have an indemnity against losing the case, it was cited in the last set of accounts as why the club feel that even if they lose the case, it doesn't come as a cost against the club. Of course, they've got to actually get the Wills family to pay the indemnity.

The million quid legal costs is his estimate for both sides, so whether that all comes back on the club depends on how/whether the judge makes an award for costs (ie both sides meet their own costs or the loser pays the winner's costs in whole or in part). Again though, that should be covered by the indemnity - it would make no sense to ensure you have an indemnity for the potential fixed cost for damages (ie the £1m in dispute) without ensuring it also covers the variable costs of the legal fees as they could potentially end up higher than any award for damages. It would be like getting car insurance where you get cover for damaging someone's car (potentially a few grand), but not for any possible legal costs if the other driver sues you for whiplash or such (which could be 10s of thousands). People do do it, but it's pretty foolish. In this case it would be even more foolish as unlike car insurance, you know there's going to be legals, that's precisely why you've taken an indemnity.

So while we shouldn't underestimate what a huge pain in the ass this case has been (and indemnity or not the club have had to pay out up front for their own costs which can't have helped the cash flow), the bottom line is that this mess is the fault of the old regime and thanks to the new board negotiating the indemnity as part of the takeover, it's them who'll have to pay for it. Which is as it should be.