Ecclestone is awaiting a criminal trial in Germany, which begins in April,
relating to the same bribery allegations and CVC co-founder Donald Mackenzie
has already said that the F1 supremo will be fired if found guilty. There is
also criminal action pending in Switzerland.
Ecclestone told The Telegraph on Thursday night that he was not worried that
the German courts might be swayed by the judgment.
“It was just an opinion. It wasn’t a ruling,” he said. “The German trial will
be based on facts, not opinions.”
Asked if anyone from CVC had been in contact since the judgment was handed
down, Ecclestone joked: “No, they’re all skiing.” CVC declined to comment.
A separate statement released on Ecclestone’s behalf on Thursday said that he
was confident he would be acquitted in Germany, pointing out that Gribkowsky
was the main source of the allegations against Ecclestone and yet he had not
given evidence in the High Court.
“As this was a civil claim, the judge was only required to deal with the claim
on the balance of probabilities,” the statement read.
“This is a much lower standard of proof than would apply in a criminal case.
“The judge has expressed his opinion that on the balance of probabilities
there was an unlawful agreement made with Dr Gribkowsky and that payments
that Mr Ecclestone made for Dr Gribkowsky’s benefit were a bribe, but this
view is not underpinned by reliable evidence.
“The judge expressly recognised there was clearly considerable force in the
point that there had been no opportunity for Mr Ecclestone’s (and the other
defendants’) legal team to cross-examine important witnesses, including Dr
Gribkowsky.
“As such, the judge’s opinion is expressed in the light of hearing only
partial evidence that has not been properly tested.”
The statement added that Constantin had brought the case for “opportunistic
reasons” and claimed that Ecclestone had rejected “many approaches” to
settle out of court.
Keith Oliver, the head of commercial fraud litigation at Peters and Peters
Solicitors LLP, representing Constantin, said that his client would appeal,
arguing that the judgment was made “on technical grounds… including
extremely complicated questions of German law, which is the governing law in
the case.”
“We’re obviously disappointed,” Oliver said. “Without criticising the judge,
because we have to respect his judgment, we feel we were vindicated.
“Notwithstanding the decision made, our client has been the victim of a very
serious wrongdoing, which the judgment has proved.”
He added that the judgment could have far-reaching consequences for
Ecclestone.
“While not binding on the German court, it will not have escaped their
attention that a High Court judge has disbelieved Mr Ecclestone’s version of
events and found that the substance of our allegations was accurately
proved,” he said.
There could also be further consequences for Ecclestone regarding his tax
liabilities.
During the seven-week High Court trial Ecclestone did not deny paying
Gribkowsky money but claimed that he was “shaken down” by the banker, who
was threatening to cause trouble for him with the UK tax authorities by
saying that he was more involved with the running of his family trust
Bambino Holdings than he should have been.
Ecclestone admitted to Bloomberg on Thursday night that HMRC was “looking at
things”.
Speculation regarding Ecclestone’s future has swirled ever since Gribkowksy
was first arrested in January 2011 and Ecclestone became embroiled in legal
battles.
He gave the first hint that he might be prepared to step away from F1 in
November when he nominated Red Bull principal Christian Horner as his
preferred successor, although he has since denied he planned to quit.
This week he denied that Justin King, the outgoing Sainsbury’s chief
executive, might replace him.
Nevertheless, Ecclestone’s grip on power would appear to be loosening.
Last month, when it was confirmed that the trial in Germany would go ahead,
Ecclestone stood down from the board of Formula One’s ultimate owners, Delta
Topco.
It has since emerged that he has also stood down from the boards of Formula
One World Championship Ltd, Formula One Hospitality and Events Services Ltd,
Formula One Management Ltd and Formula One Administration Ltd.
“I will be back on those boards once the cases have finished,” he said on
Thursday night.