On Thursday (13 February), Entain’s former CEO and chair sued the company over information exchanged with UK prosecutors as part of a £615 million bribery settlement agreement.
Lee Feldman and Kenny Alexander, former chairman and CEO of GVC Holdings, respectively, sued the gaming behemoth and its law firm Addleshaw Goddard (AG) over material that may have been supplied to investigators without their agreement.
Entain signed a Deferred Prosecution Agreement (DPA) with the Crown Prosecution Service in December 2023 to resolve an HMRC investigation into prior failings to prevent bribery at its former Turkish unit.
AG assisted the operator on several occasions, including the DPA, which settled charges against the company but not its former executives.
An Entain spokeswoman told NEXT.io, “Entain considers the claim to be without merit and will vigorously contest it.”
According to legal files acquired by the Financial Times, the two are seeking a court declaration that they were AG clients and so should have had access to the advice it provided Entain over the Turkish business.
The allegation said that the firm and/or AG may have shared confidential information with HMRC, the CPS, or other third parties during the investigation or DPA process.
“Where the privilege in those materials was a joint privilege shared by the claimants, the company was not entitled to waive privilege without the consent of the claimants.”
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Entain confronts a leadership vacuum
The case comes as Entain faces another leadership vacuum following the unexpected departure of its former CEO, Gavin Isaacs, after only five months in office.
Stella David, who previously led the Ladbrokes company on an interim basis, has resumed leadership, with former board member Pierre Bouchut taking over as chairman.
A representative for Alexander and Feldman told the FT that they “extensively relied on the specialist legal advice provided for their benefit by AG over the many years they grew” the company.
“They trusted throughout this time that their personal interests were properly protected and have therefore repeatedly sought unfettered access to all of that legal advice, which has so far been denied to them, by both AG and Entain, leaving them with no option but to bring this claim.”
The two executives also filed a lawsuit against the Gambling Commission in November, alleging that the regulator exposed confidential information while blocking their 888 leadership ambition.
Source: Next.io
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