Coleen: I will fight to make Rebekah pay every penny
COLEEN ROONEY and Rebekah Vardy are set for one last dramatic High Court showdown over who will foot the multi-million-pound bill for their costly ‘Wagatha Christie’ libel battle.
Sources close to Mrs Rooney – who won the case last week – last night told The Mail on Sunday she will fight to make sure Mrs Vardy pays the full amount, estimated to be up to £3million.
Usually a winning party will still have to pay about 30 per cent of the costs. But Mrs Rooney’s team claim the judge’s damning judgment that Mrs Vardy did sell stories about her to The Sun newspaper means it is ‘inconceivable’ that she won’t be made to pay the full amount.
Mrs Justice Steyn ruled on Friday that Mrs Vardy, 40, and her agent Caroline Watt had leaked stories about Mrs Rooney, wife of ex-England skipper Wayne. Mrs Vardy had sued her former friend for libel over a now-famous social media post in which Mrs Rooney described setting up a ‘sting operation’ by posting fake stories to selected followers on her private Instagram account to uncover who was leaking stories about her to The Sun.
The ‘big reveal’ post in October 2019 ended: ‘It’s… Rebekah Vardy’s account.’
After Mrs Vardy brought legal action, Mrs Rooney, 36, offered her a ‘drop hands’ offer, which meant they would both walk away, paying their own costs. She also suggested they make a charity donation.
But Mrs Vardy declined, leading to a costly High Court trial. Now, after her victory, Mrs Rooney wants her rival to pay up.
A source close to Mrs Rooney said: ‘Coleen didn’t want this to happen. She knew the money would be better spent on so many other things but she won’t be letting Rebekah get away with not paying the full costs.
‘She tried to settle this early on but Rebekah wouldn’t have it. And if you look at the outlining of the judgment, it is inconceivable that a judge wouldn’t agree she will pay them in full. Let’s not forget, this action was brought by Rebekah and she lost spectacularly.’
During a preliminary hearing in March last year, the costs were estimated at £1.3 million. Now, after the case’s two-week High Court hearing, reports have claimed the total could be £3million. Mrs Vardy’s barrister, Hugh Tomlinson QC, reportedly charges £10,000 a day, while his opposite number, David Sherborne, charges about £8,000.
There is speculation that Mrs Vardy and her husband, Leicester City striker Jamie, may have to sell their Portuguese villa to pay the legal bill.