Everton could launch legal action against Premier League in wake of points deductions
Andy Burnham has refused to rule the possibility that Everton could launch legal action against the Premier League.
The Toffees-supporting mayor responded to a question via Twitter on 9 April to insist it “most certainly” isn’t off the table for the club to go after the authorities with a lawsuit after the two points deductions this season.
The former Labour cabinet minister believes there was an “abuse of process” with the first commission which hit the club with a 10-point penalty, that was subsequently reduced to six on appeal, and is convinced a passage from the second commission’s written decision on Monday (8 April) suggests the league have not treated the club properly.
While deducting two more points for a second profit and sustainability breach the panel had ruled the league’s criticisms of the club during a dispute on the level of cooperation involved in the most-recent investigation were “unwarranted, overstated, or both” (page 56, paragraph 256), which Burnham branded a “damning verdict”, and feels keeps open the possibility of a legal challenge from Goodison Park.
He wrote: “It most certainly can’t be ruled out… As I said at the start of all this, I think there was an abuse of process with the first commission.
“Now we have this statement which suggests an ongoing failure to act fairly and proportionately by the PL.”
Everton could turn the tables on Richard Masters
Burnham has been one of the most vocal high-profile critics of the Premier League throughout the saga which has now seen the Toffees stripped of eight points this term, pending another appeal, and could still see more taken after the campaign ends.
Based on the ever-growing recriminations that have resulted from the mess created by the outgoing profit and sustainability rules there appears to be the risk of all sorts of legal action further down the line.
For the most part Everton face being on the receiving end, but if it could be proven that the club have been treated disproportionately by Richard Masters and company then the dynamic could potentially be reversed.
That would surely require a much higher burden of proof in a legal setting than the statement from the latest commission and general suspicions, even if none of it has been a good look for the league as it is.
That Masters appeared in The Times on 9 April, arguing against the independent regulator immediately after Everton have again been punished, certainly feels like a very convenient coincidence if nothing else.
But it is one thing being convinced of something and another being able to prove it in a lawsuit, while the four (and counting) commissions Everton and Nottingham Forest have collectively been involved in this season has proven how rulings can fluctuate.
But Burnham is convinced the Toffees haven’t been treated with an even hand, and he is far from the only one, so it may be that the club looks to prove that.
In other Everton news, a conclusion on the takeover is expected imminently with an agreement not likely to be reached between 777 Partners and MSP Sports Capital.
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