AUGUST 21, 2002

Meanwhile in the High Court...

This morning in Court 19 of the High Court in London Justice Sir Gavin Lightman was due to preside over another hearing in the ongoing case between Morgan Grenfell and Arrows Autosport.

This morning in Court 19 of the High Court in London Justice Sir Gavin Lightman was due to preside over another hearing in the ongoing case between Morgan Grenfell and Arrows Autosport. This is apparently a hearing based on the original proceedings in May which was to discuss whether or not Arrows has the right to dispose of the company's assets without the agreement of Morgan Grenfell. The case that took place in July was an attempt by Arrows to lift a ban on the sale of assets. This backfired and resulted in a highly critical judgement by the same Justice Lightman.

The key issue is whether or not a letter between Arrows and Morgan Grenfell on July 11 2001 is legally-binding as Arrows claims. If Arrows wins the case it will make a big difference in terms of the debt surrounding the team as Morgan Grenfell will, in effect, have to accept that it has lost the money it is claiming. This will mean that Arrows debts will be reduced by something in the region of 30%, and this will make the team easier to sell, although the debts will still be considerable.

It is going to be hard work, however, as Justice Lightman's ruling in July indicated that the judge was not impressed by anyone involved with the Arrows case.

This is all entirely separate from a winding-up petition against Arrows, which is due to be heard on September 10. This involves a recruitment agnecy which is owed around $15,000 by the team and is believed to have been joined by Jos Verstappen, who is owed considerably more.