How Ipswich Town court victory could benefit Port Vale’s financially
Ipswich Town have won a landmark court case about police costs in a case that could affect all Football League clubs.
Last year, the High Court agreed Suffolk Constabulary were entitled to recover costs for officers on streets around the Championship club’s ground.
In the initial High Court case, lawyers for the police argued the club controlled the public highway, which club bosses disputed.
But at the Court of Appeal, three judges upheld the club’s appeal, having been told the High Court judge had misdirected himself on the law.
The ruling means that other clubs will be able to dispute any police charges for officers outside of the vicinity of the stadium itself.
Michael Beloff QC, representing Ipswich had said that if the initial ruling had been upheld it would have been “expensive for a large number of clubs in the Football League.”