Barrister's £950k settlement in claim brought by group including Wayne Rooney

A leading barrister who faced a long-running claim by a group featuring Wayne Rooney and former Manchester United team-mate Wes Brown has won a significant out of court settlement three months before the case was slated for trial, his defence team have said.

Mr Jonathan Peacock KC and his insurer, Bar Mutual Indemnity Fund, faced a claim in the region of £50m relating to a film finance tax scheme.

It was launched in 2019 by 123 claimants including Rooney, Brown and former Tottenham manager Juande Ramos.

A five-week trial was due to begin on 16 January 2023.

But Clyde and Co, the firm representing Mr Peacock KC, said a settlement had been agreed. It included a "dismissal of all claims in their entirety" and "a substantial payment to Mr Peacock in respect of his costs - bringing the total payments towards his costs to £935,000."

Film finance tax schemes were introduced in the 1990s to boost investment in the UK industry and allowed investors to buy film rights and lease them back to the film company.

The schemes were considered attractive to high-net-worth taxpayers looking to reduce their tax liabilities.

In a statement Clyde and Co added: "In 2019, 123 claimants, including high-net-worth individuals, a number of partners and former partners in Magic Circle and other major law firms, well-known King's Counsel, and former high-profile football stars (including Wayne Rooney, Wes Brown and Juande Ramos, at the time of his investment the manager of Tottenham Hotspur) brought claims against Mr Peacock, a senior tax barrister, who was not instructed by them and never advised them, but had been retained by the promoter of the Invicta Film Partnership No. 43 LLP ("Invicta 43"). The claim was valued in the region of £50 million."

Simon Lambeth, the claims director at Bar Mutual, said: "The view of the Bar Mutual is that these claims should not have been brought against Mr Peacock KC. Where the Bar Mutual, with the assistance of its legal advisers, concludes that claims are unmeritorious, Bar Mutual will always support its members and robustly defend them to trial and judgment."

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