Sports firm boss wins case on ?126cr deal he made when drunk
Sports Direct's Mike Ashley has won a lawsuit over a £15 million (?126 crore) deal made in a pub in 2013. In the case, a banker alleged that during a ?night of heavy drinking?, Ashley agreed to pay him £15 million if company?s shares doubled. However, the judge said nobody would've thought what Ashley said in the pub was ?serious?.
Newcastle United owner and Sports Direct boss Mike Ashley has won a high court battle over a £15m deal allegedly made in a London pub, calling time on a case that will be long remembered for days of evidence concerning excessive alcohol consumption.The case revolved around investment banker Jeffrey Blue?s allegation that during a ?night of heavy drinking? at the Horse and Groom pub near Sports Direct?s Oxford Street store in January 2013, Ashley agreed to pay him £15m if the company?s shares doubled to £8.However, on Wednesday, Mr Justice Leggatt, who had said he found the case was ?a lot more interesting than some?, ruled that no one would have thought what Ashley said in the pub was ?serious?.?The Sports Direct senior management meetings certainly show that Mr Ashley is happy to combine discussion of business matters with the consumption of alcohol,? the judge said in his ruling. ?But there is no evidence to suggest that Mr Ashley has ever negotiated or concluded a contract at one of these meetings.?The evening at the Horse and Groom was, in any event, a considerably less formal occasion than the senior management meetings, as there was no agenda or structure for the occasion and the conversation was largely social or general chat, rather than being specifically directed to any business subject.? Ashley was not in court to hear the judge deliver his ruling, but his lawyers said he had won a ?comprehensive? victory.In a statement, the businessman said: ?The only reason the Sports Direct share price exceeded £8, and will hopefully do so again, is because of the sterling efforts of all the people who work at Sports Direct.?Ashley, who gave evidence at the trial, said he could not recall making the alleged deal and if he had it would have been ?obviously just banter?.He had told the court that he had met Blue, who was then an adviser to Sports Direct, and three other finance specialists at the Horse & Groom pub and ?consumed a lot of alcohol?.?I can?t remember the details of the conversations that we had in the pub as it was a heavy night of drinking,? Ashley had said. ?I do remember that we had a lot of drinks and a lot of banter. ?If I did say to Mr Blue that I would pay him £15m if he could increase [Sports Direct?s] share price to £8, it would be obvious to everyone, including Mr Blue, that I wasn?t being serious.? He said he paid Blue, whom he called ?Jeffers?, £1m for ?other deals? unrelated to the night in the Horse & Groom.Sports Direct?s shares hit the £8 price target in February 2014. The shares have since collapsed below £3, in part because of reputational damage caused by a Guardian investigation that revealed workers at the retailer?s Derbyshire warehouse were being paid less than the minimum wage.Shortly after the shares hit £8 at 1.04pm on 25 February 2014 Blue?s wife, who was also in court, texted him to say: ?It?s hit 8!!!!!?.Blue told the judge that Ashley was a ?serious businessman?. He said the work ethic at Sports Direct was ?like nothing else I have ever seen?, but he said Ashley sometimes did business ?in unorthodox ways and in unusual venues?.Blue claimed Ashley once vomited into a fireplace after a senior management meeting that was ?effectively a pub lock-in? and said the businessman would take naps under tables at ?boring? meetings.Lawyers told the judge that Ashley had run up legal bills of £1.5m, and Blue bills of ?£1m-odd?. The judge said Blue would have to pick up Ashley?s legal bills and £600,000 would have to be paid on account within the next month.Lawyers indicated that Blue had been ?assisted? by insurers in launching the litigation. 