Roman Abramovich sues over funds earmarked in part for Ukraine - The Times
Photo: Russian oligarch Roman Abramovich (Getty Images)
Russian oligarch Roman Abramovich has hired some of the world’s top lawyers to challenge the authorities of Jersey, which froze more than £5.3 billion of his assets. The funds stem from the sale of Chelsea, part of which was intended to be transferred to Ukraine, according to The Times.
Since 2022, billions of pounds belonging to Roman Abramovich have been frozen by the courts of the self-governing island of Jersey. The funds are the subject of complex legal proceedings after the local government launched an investigation into their origin.
Abramovich’s representatives said that £1.4 billion of the £2.35 billion raised from the sale of Chelsea cannot be allocated to a charitable foundation until the Jersey government halts its investigation and related court action.
Abramovich’s legal team now includes Lord Wolfson KC, the House of Lords’ shadow attorney general, and Eric Hershmann, who served as senior legal adviser to US President Donald Trump during his first term.
The team also includes four other senior lawyers: Howard Sharp, a former attorney general of Jersey; Maya Lester, a leading human rights barrister with extensive sanctions cases experience; Richard Lissack, a lawyer specializing in financial litigation; and Andrew Stafford, an expert in international financial matters.
It is also reported that Abramovich has secured a court ruling allowing partial reimbursement of legal costs from the Jersey government, estimated at around £2.5 million.
Sanctions, sale of Chelsea, and Ukraine
Russian oligarch Roman Abramovich acquired Chelsea in the summer of 2003 but stepped aside as director in 2022 following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, after sanctions were imposed over his ties to Kremlin leader Vladimir Putin.
Abramovich announced the sale of Chelsea in early March 2022 and completed the deal in May for $5.4 billion. He proposed setting up a charitable foundation to distribute all net proceeds to victims of the war in Ukraine.
The UK government granted Abramovich a license to sell the club on the condition that the proceeds be used to support victims of the war in Ukraine.
At present, the funds from the sale remain frozen in a bank account held by Fordstam Ltd, Chelsea’s former parent company owned by Abramovich.
RBC-Ukraine previously reported that the UK government sought to reach an agreement with Abramovich to use the Chelsea sale proceeds for humanitarian aid to Ukraine. Later, officials said no such agreement had been reached and that legal action would follow.
Ukrainians affected by the war could receive less than half of the $3.09 billion generated by the sale of Chelsea. Earlier reports said Abramovich could face a lawsuit if he fails to transfer the funds—around £2.5 billion ($3.09 billion)—to Ukraine as pledged.
