HarperCollins awaits October Abramovich case judgement

HarperCollins has settled with two Russian billionaires in a libel case over Catherine Belton's book Putin's People (William Collins), but will await a judgement later this year on claims brought by Chelsea Football Club owner Roman Abramovich and a Russian energy giant.

Abramovich is suing the publisher and former Financial Times correspondent Belton over passages in the book, including an allegation he bought Chelsea in 2003 on the orders of Vladimir Putin. Energy firm Rosneft is also suing both parties for libel over allegations about its own business dealings.

Both HarperCollins and Belton argue their book, released in hardback last year and as a paperback in April, is balanced and well-researched following extensive reporting and interviews over a number of years.

Following a two-day High Court preliminary hearing, Judge Amanda Tipples announced on 29th July she expected to issue a judgement in October on Abramovich's and Rosneft's claims.

In a statement issued after the case, a spokesperson for Abramovich said: “Today the defendants argued, among other things, that they do not suggest that Mr Abramovich has acted in an illegal or unlawful manner and that, in fact, their portrayal of Mr Abramovich was intended 'as someone able to do business in the US and the UK and as a person considered suitable to own a major football club." The defendants told the court that they consider Mr Abramovich to be separate to the main themes explored in the book and that "Putin’s inner circle comprises almost exclusively current Russian security service or former KGB personnel, of which Mr Abramovich is clearly not a part."

The defendants also emphasised that the named individual who suggested that Chelsea Football Club was purchased at the direction of President Putin was someone "prone to overstating his role" and argued that readers would take his credibility into account when reading the book. They did, however, not explain why this individual has such a central role in the book.

“Although it is helpful to have the defendants’ clarifications, their position in today’s hearing does not correspond to what is actually written in the book, and further underscores the need for the false and defamatory claims about Mr Abramovich to be corrected as soon as possible.”

A spokesperson for HarperCollins said: "The past two days in the High Court represent the first stage in what is likely to be a long fight to defend our author Catherine Belton and her important and authoritative book Putin’s People against Russian state-controlled oil entity Rosneft and Roman Abramovich. We look forward to receiving the judge's ruling later this year."

HarperCollins has now settled with two other Russian billionaires, Pyotr Aven and Mikhail Fridman, who brought their own legal action against the publisher but not Belton herself. HarperCollins will amend some passages in the book about them, according to details of the settlement, which were released on 28th July.

“HarperCollins has been happy to amend the text to delete references to connections between Mr Aven, Mr Fridman and the KGB (claims for which HarperCollins recognises there has been no significant evidence), and to apologise that the subject was not discussed with them prior to initial publication,” the settlement said.

The settlement shows the amendments, which will be made in three paragraphs and one footnote. However “there shall be no order as to costs”.

Court documents say a statement will be published as a press release on the HarperCollins' website for a period of eight weeks. It includes the passage: "HarperCollins has amended some statements in the book in order to record the position as accurately as possible. In particular, HarperCollins and the author recognise and regret that comment was not sought earlier from Mr Aven and Mr Fridman in relation to statements suggesting Mr Aven and Mr Fridman had connections with the KGB in the early part of their careers in the late 1980s. HarperCollins has been happy to amend the text to delete references to connections between Mr Aven, Mr Fridman and the KGB (claims for which HarperCollins recognises there has been no significant evidence), and to apologise that the subject was not discussed with them prior to initial publication."