FILES held by former Rangers chairmen Dave King and Paul Murray are to be included in a search for documents to be disclosed in a multi-million pound damages claim over an alleged merchandise deal breach over the club's agreements with Mike Ashley's Sports Direct.
A judge has ruled that they should be treated as 'custodians' - people whose files are searched for over legal disclosures relevant to the case - along with former commercial director Scott Steedman.
It is the latest twist over the bitter battle between Rangers and Sports Direct after a judge previously stated the club had breached a legal agreement allowing a Sports Direct subsidiary to make an offer over club merchandising, including the Scottish Premiership leaders' replica kits.
In July, 2019, Judge Lionel Persey said that Rangers had breached an agreement with Sports Direct over the club's kit deal.
READ MORE: Puma sales of new Rangers strips halted as questions raised over rights
He ruled Mr Ashley's company should have been given the chance to match a shirt deal struck with Hertfordshire-based football merchandising firm Elite and sportswear firm Hummel thought to be worth £10m. A damages hearing was expected to follow.
Rangers have won a right to get financial information revealing the effect of a fan boycott of Sports Direct - in fighting that multi-million pound damages claim.
Lawyers acting for the Newcastle United owner's sports firm had claimed that Rangers feared a supporter boycott if Sports Direct had won valuable merchandise rights.
A campaign was launched in early 2015 by the Sons of Struth fans group as South Africa-based businessman Dave King moved to try and shift Mr Ashley's influence at the club and one petition calling for a boycott of Sports Direct attracted over 8000 signatures.
READ MORE: Confirmed: Rangers regain legal ownership of its name and trademarks
In March, 2015, Mr King and his so-called Three Bears associates including Paul Murray achieved a landslide victory at an extraordinary general meeting to control the boardroom while evicting associates of Mr Ashley, Derek Llambias and Barry Leach. That came after David Somers, who was chairman, and James Easdale had already resigned.
After taking over Mr King declared that his priority would be to tear up the merchandsing agreement that saw Mr Ashley's firm take in around 93p from every £1 made from the sale of strips and merchandise.
In a battle over whose files should be disclosed in the affair, high court judge Lionel Persey said Mr King and Murray should be among the 'custodians', saying that they "were board members and decisions were being put to the board concerning the third parties who were going to be contracted with".
Mr Persey said that Mr Murray who was a director of Rangers Retail, a joint venture between Sports Direct and the club which controlled the club's merchandising and stores was supporting the boycott on behalf of Rangers.
The judge said that Mr Steedman was "intimately involved with the rights that were being offered and granted by Rangers"
At the Commercial Court in London Rangers also won the right to the disclosure of financial documents that would show the financial effect of the boycott of the club.
Sports Direct also won the right to disclosure of third party interests in purchasing the merchandising rights.
Mr Ashley, once a controlling figure at the club with a hold over its trademarks and merchandise and Rangers have been embroiled in various High Court litigations, centred on the merchandise deal, in London for more than two years.
Discussions on what files should be disclosed, come as a company in the Sports Direct Group, SDI Retail (SDIR), is pursuing damages over an alleged breach of obligations under merchandise deals through the Commercial Court in London.
The case revolves around Mike Ashley, who was a former Rangers shareholder and once seen as a club kinpin, striking a deal with a previous board that saw his company take in around 93p from every £1 made from the sale of strips and merchandise.
That deal led to some fans boycotting Sports Direct stores and their sale of Rangers kit.
At the end of 2014 the fans group, Rangers Supporters Trust launched an alternative shirt for fans as they took on Mr Ashley - and said all profits would be ploughed back into an increased shareholding in their club.
The Herald revealed that in early 2015, Mr Ashley was declared the "ultimate controlling party" of Rangers Retail, a joint venture with the club which controlled the club's merchandising and stores.
John Gilligan, Dave King and Paul Murray celebrate as the so-called Three Bears won control of the Ibrox boardroom in March 2015. None of the three are now on the board.
When the venture was first confirmed by the club under then chief executive Charles Green in August 2012, it was promoted as enabling Rangers "to once again control its retail operation and give supporters the chance to buy direct from the club and in doing so, continue to invest in its future".
Two weeks ago at the Commercial Court in London in a debate over what should be disclosed by both sides in the damages claim, Sa'ad Hossain for SDIR, told Judge Persey Rangers were requiring financial documents that would show the financial effect of any boycott of the club.
He said: "Rangers say there are were some supporters who would not have bought kit in the relevant period from around July, 2018 in the event that SDIR acquired the offered rights because of antipathy to SDIR.
"This disclosure is contested as it is not to do with July, 2018, onwards, it is to do with the historical boycott that took place when the joint venture with [Rangers Retail] was in place, commencing around November, 2014.
READ MORE: Questions over future of Rangers as Dave King steps down
"As we understand, Rangers' position is searches should be made of financial information of [Rangers Retail] going back to 2014 so that the impact of the boycott in 2014 can be determined.
"And then in turn [they will] make inferences of a boycott in different circumstances relevant to the damages claim.
"There are several reasons for thinking that this isn't going to be a very informative exercise."
He said it was common ground that that from 2018 onwards that Mr King and Mr Murray would have complied with their obligations which would have required them not to support a boycott of the goods.
The Commercial Court 'trial' is expected to take 12 days and both sides have also been arguing over the costs to be incurred.
Rangers are facing a legal bill of more than £1 million to fight the damages claim.
Court documents itemising some of the charges that Rangers are likely to incur fighting their corner, included £450,000 for trial preparation and £300,000 on expert reports.
Judge Persey imposed budget limits on some of the club’s other legal fees in a bid to reduce costs, capping Rangers spending on the courtroom trial itself at £319,750.
Judge Persey also limited some of the spending set out by SDIR for the case. SDIR had put forward costs totalling around £2.1m, but the judge slashed that figure to around £1.6m.
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