Logan: No money received
The director of a litigation investment company has paid “substantial” libel damages to broadcaster Gabby Logan and her husband Kenny, a former Scottish rugby international.
Gwilym Jones, a director of Henderson & Jones, was sued for comments he made in an article on Mail Online, which alleged that the couples had received £500,000 for promoting tax avoidance schemes to celebrity friends and then sought falsely to characterise that income as loans.
“They had done no such thing,” said the Logans’ barrister, Ben Hamer of 5RB, reading a statement in open court.
He said Mail Online has since deleted the article, retracted the allegations and apologised to the Logans.
Henderson & Jones purchases and funds litigation and arbitration claims. It specialises in buying claims from insolvent companies and individuals.
Mr Logan now works as a businessman in the sports industry. Henderson & Jones had bought from two dissolved companies – Welbeck Wealth Management and Welbeck Consulting – the right to bring money claims against companies in which he had share capital, commencing those proceedings in 2020.
The defendants are Klas International – of which Mr Logan was a director until 2021 – and Logan Group, of which he is a director and Mrs Logan the company secretary.
Mr Jones was quoted by Mail Online as saying that companies controlled by the couple worked with Welbeck to sell tax-avoidance schemes and tried to disguise their income from this as ‘loans’ to avoid paying more tax.
“We consider the companies’ accounts are clear – these payments were treated as loans, which now have to be repaid,” he was quoted as saying.
Mr Hamer said the allegations were false and the publication of these comments caused “serious harm and distress to Gabby and Kenny Logan”.
He said Mr Logan was in fact paid by Welbeck “merely to attend events and network in his capacity as a former rugby player. He has informed Henderson & Jones that tax was fully paid on all income he earned thereby, as his accountant has confirmed”.
Mrs Logan, meanwhile, played no part in the business and did not receive any income from it.
The statement continued: “When, after extended correspondence both with him and his solicitors, Mr Jones repeatedly refused to retract the false and seriously defamatory allegations that he had made against Mr and Mrs Logan via the Mail Online, these proceedings were issued.
“The Logans made part 36 offers to Mr Jones, which he eventually accepted. He has now paid substantial damages to the Logans and has agreed to indemnify their legal costs to be assessed if not agreed.”
The publisher of MailOnline also settled with the Logans, as did the former editor of The Sun, Kelvin MacKenzie, for comments he made on Twitter/X after the story was published.
Statement for each claim were read before Mr Justice Linden today, bringing an end to the actions.
Leave a Comment