A High Court ruling has dismissed an appeal by Rebekah Vardy against a decision that her legal costs should be reduced, with Coleen Rooney’s lawyers emerging victorious in the ‘Wagatha Row’ costs dispute.
A recent High Court ruling has dismissed an appeal by Rebekah Vardy, the wife of Leicester City striker Jamie Vardy, against a decision that her legal costs should be reduced.
Rebekah Vardy is a British media personality and model.
Born on June 28, 1984, in Derby, England, she rose to fame after marrying Jamie Vardy, an English professional footballer.
Rebekah gained public attention for her appearance on the reality TV show 'I'm a Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here!' in 2018.
She has also been involved in various charity work and social media influencer roles.
In 2022, Mrs. ‘Vardy sued Mrs. Coleen Rooney, the wife of former Manchester United striker Wayne Rooney, for libel over allegations made by Mrs. Rooney about someone using Mrs. Vardy’s Instagram account.’ Mrs. Justice Steyn found in July 2022 that the allegation was ‘substantially true,’ and ordered Mrs. Vardy to pay 90% of Mrs. Rooney’s costs, including an initial payment of £800,000.
Mrs. Vardy’s lawyer argued that her legal team had committed misconduct by understating some of her costs so she could create a discrepancy with the other party’s costs. However, this argument was rejected by senior costs judge Andrew Gordon-Saker, who ruled that while there was a ‘failure to be transparent,’ it was not ‘sufficiently unreasonable or improper’ to constitute misconduct.
In a ruling on Thursday, High Court judge Mr. Justice Cavanagh dismissed Mrs. Vardy’s appeal against the decision. He stated that the appeal must fail because the judge was entitled to reach the conclusion he came to. This means that Mrs. Vardy will have to pay the full amount of £1,833,906.89, with an additional £100,000 being paid to Mrs. Rooney ahead of a later date.
The case highlights the complexities and nuances of cost disputes in High Court proceedings. While there were allegations of misconduct by Mrs. Vardy’s legal team, the judge ultimately ruled that this was not sufficient to warrant a reduction in costs. The outcome will be seen as a victory for Mrs. Rooney’s lawyers, who had argued that their client’s costs should be reduced due to the alleged misconduct.
