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Judge Brands Golfer 'Manipulative'; Appeal Allowed
9 Feb
Summary
- Ex-champion golfer's seven-year legal dispute with tenants is heading to the Court of Appeal.
- A High Court judge previously dismissed the claim, calling the golfer 'manipulative'.
- Despite a prior ruling, the appeal has a 'real prospect of success,' according to a new judge.
Ex-champion golfer Vivien Saunders OBE has been granted permission to take a seven-year legal dispute with tenants to the Court of Appeal. Saunders, who won the Women's British Open in 1977, had accused 20 occupants of luxury lodges on her land of breaching their leases. She claimed these breaches could lead to the forfeiture of their properties.
In October, a High Court judge dismissed Saunders' claim, labelling her 'manipulative,' 'bullying,' and 'abusive,' and suggesting she had attempted to mislead the court. The judge also found no basis for claims of water theft or significant lease violations.
However, Lord Justice Arnold of the Court of Appeal has now ruled that the appeal has a 'real prospect of success.' This decision has reportedly devastated the lodge occupants, many of whom are retired and have invested their savings.
Saunders, who also has a prior assault conviction, has been involved in numerous disputes with residents over her land in St Neots, Cambridgeshire. This land is adjacent to the disused Abbotsley Golf Course, which she intends to develop into a residential estate.
