Man City Appeal Is Unlikely To Be Decided By January As Lawyer Says Final Verdict “Could Take A Very Long Time”
Man City won’t know the outcome of the appeal to their Premier League charges before the end of January, according to lawyer James Severn.
The I Paper contacted Severn, who is a partner at the law firm Pennington Manches Cooper. He was asked about whether a decision could be reached by the start of next year, and Severn replied it is a “stretch – to put it mildly”.
Asked to elaborate on why the appeals process will take longer, he explained that the complexity of the case means the decision has to be based on a thorough assessment of the evidence, whilst also being meticulous to ensure the final verdict can’t be disputed by lawyers:
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“My instinct is that it will probably take longer given the complexity of the case. When you look at the original decision, they are referencing a 150-page index and thousands of documents, so I wouldn’t be expecting something super quick from the appeal board.”
“Everyone will be keen to deal with it as quickly as it can reasonably be achieved, but they will all be desperate to make sure whatever is done is done thoroughly, so it could take a very long time, to be frank.”
“Panels don’t like to be appealed – and they especially don’t like appeals against them to be upheld – so they will be doing this extremely carefully, especially given how high-profile this case is. They will be leaving no stone unturned rather than rushing things through.”
Other routes may be explored by Man City after the appeal
Even by the end of this appeals process, there are suggestions that the Cityzens could explore a “nuclear option”.
That would entail using lawyers to circumvent the Premier League’s verdict at the High Court. In that scenario, City and the league could be pitted against each other in litigation, which could take years to resolve.
How does this affect Enzo Maresca’s side?
There have been reports that the Premier League could vote on a punishment before the appeal is resolved so that a points deduction can be implemented sooner rather than later.
However, there is next to no chance of that happening. It’s expected that the sanctions hearing will take place concurrently with the appeal, but no punishment would be meted out until the appeals panel announces its verdict.
It means that Maresca‘s men will not be impacted for the time being, but there remains a huge amount of uncertainty around the club.