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Rebekah Vardy agrees to pay £1.2m of Coleen Rooney's legal costs Rebekah Vardy must pay £1.4m of Coleen Rooney's 'Wagatha Christie' legal costs
(about 1 hour later)
The high-profile libel battle between Coleen Rooney (left) and Rebekah Vardy was dubbed as the case of Wagatha Christie The high-profile libel battle between Coleen Rooney (left) and Rebekah Vardy was dubbed the "Wagatha Christie" trial
Rebekah Vardy has agreed to pay almost £1.2m of Coleen Rooney's legal costs following their libel battle, a judge has been told. Rebekah Vardy must pay more than £1.4m of Coleen Rooney's legal costs following their libel battle, a judge has said.
Mrs Rooney ran up a legal bill totalling more than £1.8 million while successfully defending herself against Mrs Vardy's High Court claim in 2022, a specialist costs court previously heard. Mrs Rooney ran up a legal bill totalling more than £1.8m while successfully defending herself against Mrs Vardy's High Court claim in 2022. After Mrs Vardy lost the case, the judge ordered her to pay 90% of Mrs Rooney's costs, approximately £1.5m.
After Mrs Vardy lost the libel case, the judge ordered her to pay 90% of Mrs Rooney's costs, approximately £1.62 million. Earlier on Tuesday, a specialist costs court was told that Mrs Vardy had agreed to pay £1.19m to Mrs Rooney, who was also asking for a further £315,000 in "assessment costs".
Now, in written submissions to a hearing on Tuesday, Mrs Vardy's barrister, Juliet Wells, said Mrs Rooney's total legal bill of £1,833,906.89 "has now been settled at £1,190,000, being [approximately] £1,125,000 plus interest of [approximately] £65.000". Costs judge Mark Whalan then said it was "reasonable and proportionate" for Mrs Vardy to pay her an additional £212,266.
'The end'
There are still some costs to be ironed out at the hearing but judge Mark Whalan said he was "pleased" that the two sides had come to an agreement after a "hard-fought" battle. He said he was "generally happy" that the outcome represented a "commercially satisfactory conclusion for both sides", but noted there had been "extraordinary expenditure of costs" by the parties.
Ms Wells added that Mrs Rooney is now claiming what the lawyer called "assessment costs" of more than £300,000 that were "grossly disproportionate". "I do mean it when I say that I hope that this is the end of a long and unhappy road."
She recommended they should be capped at "no more than £100,000". Mrs Rooney is the wife of ex-England footballer Wayne Rooney, while Mrs Vardy is married to his former team-mate Jamie Vardy. Both women are now celebrities and TV personalities in their own right.
In written submissions, Ms Wells said that Mrs Rooney's original £1.8m legal bill was "substandard" and included costs "of briefing the press" and others to which she had "no entitlement". Neither attended the remote hearing, with Judge Whalan declaring they "can both part to put this matter behind them".
Mrs Vardy's barrister, Juliet Wells, had argued that Mrs Rooney was claiming "grossly disproportionate" costs, recommending they were capped at "no more than £100,000".
In written submissions, Ms Wells said Mrs Rooney's original £1.8m legal bill was "substandard" and included costs "of briefing the press" and others to which she had "no entitlement".
But lawyers for Mrs Rooney said in their written submissions that Mrs Vardy was "the author of her own misfortune" and that she should "reflect upon her approach".But lawyers for Mrs Rooney said in their written submissions that Mrs Vardy was "the author of her own misfortune" and that she should "reflect upon her approach".
Judge Whalan added that he was "pleased" that the two sides had come to a "commercial accommodation".
Mrs Rooney is the wife of ex-England footballer Wayne Rooney while Mrs Vardy is married to his former teammate Jamie Vardy, though both women are now celebrities and TV personalities in their own right.