Staveley’s Huntington’s claim ‘puzzling’, says judge
A JUDGE has described Amanda Staveley’s claim that her Huntington’s disease affected negotiations in a £36m bankruptcy battle as “puzzling”.
In a High Court dispute, the football financier said that her rare brain disease was “exploited” by Greek shipping tycoon Victor Restis during negotiations over the repayment of a multimillion-pound loan.
Ms Staveley, who brokered the Saudi Arabia-led takeover of Newcastle United in 2021, cited her medical condition as part of her attempt to throw out a bankruptcy petition relating to a £36m debt allegedly owed to Mr Restis.
The shipping magnate has filed bankruptcy proceedings against Ms Staveley over claims she failed to repay a loan from 16 years ago, which has allegedly accrued more than £31m in interest.
In written evidence for a court hearing that took place yesterday, Ms Staveley claimed that Mr Restis “exploited her medical vulnerability” during discussions over the loan agreement.
However, a judge yesterday said that Ms Staveley’s reference to her Huntington’s disease was “quite puzzling”.
Specifically, the judge sought to question how her illness was a factor during negotiations over the loan agreement in 2021.
This came after Ms Staveley said her Huntington’s disease had led to “impaired thinking and judgment” during her talks with Mr Restis.
However, Mr Restis argued that they were not told about Ms Staveley’s Huntington’s disease nor informed about how the illness would disadvantage her abilities to negotiate.
This is the latest spat in the case, as Ms Staveley previously described Mr Restis’s bankruptcy petition as an “abuse of process”.
Ms Staveley was diagnosed with Huntington’s disease in 2013, a genetic and incurable condition that causes the progressive breakdown of nerve cells in the brain. The 50-year-old inherited the Huntington’s gene from her mother, Lynne Staveley, a former champion show jumper.
The High Court judge yesterday also said that Whatsapp messages between Ms Staveley and Mr Restis suggest they shared a “warm business relationship”, in contrast to her claims that the Greek entrepreneur is “dangerous” and intimidated her to sign agreements.
Ted Loveday, Ms Staveley’s lawyer, responded: “Business relationships are complex. There are ups and downs, times of warmth, times of difficulty.”
He argued that Ms Staveley was under pressure to enter the agreements, despite being able to review and revise the contracts before signing.
Mr Loveday said: “She didn’t feel able to say I’m not paying at all.”
The case continues.