Liquidators agree Leeds United creditor claims

MORE than £18m of claims made by unsecured creditors after Leeds United went into administration in 2007 have now been agreed, according to a report by joint liquidators.

The report by accountancy firm KPMG has revealed that 231 claims totalling £18.53m have been agreed.

A further 61 claims totalling £4.7m have been rejected and 23 have been agreed as nil.

It has been speculated in some circles that an extra £4.75m payment to creditors, which would be triggered if Leeds United was promoted to the Premier League before the start of the 2017/18 season, could determine the club’s promotion aspirations over the coming seasons.

However, a Leeds United spokesman said the windfall the club would receive from promotion to the Premier League would supersede the size of the payment, which is outlined in the report, many times and was not an issue for the Elland Road outfit.

The report, which covers the year to February 14, 2012, said that a second interim dividend of 2p in the pound has been paid to unsecured creditors with admitted claims last October.

Total payments paid to date are 4p in the pound. However, the report said that no further “significant” dividends are expected to be paid to unsecured creditors unless Leeds United is promoted to the Premier League before the start of the 2017/18 season.

Leeds United was relegated to League One in 2007 after being deducted points for going into administration.

Administrator KPMG had already agreed to sell the club to a newly-formed company – Leeds United Football Club Limited – led by chairman Ken Bates.

Howard Smith, Richard Dixon and Mark Firmin, of KPMG, were appointed joint liquidators of the ‘old company’ on May 4, 2007, and their role has included adjudicating claims of creditors and making payments to creditors in order of priority.

Total fees drawn by the joint liquidators since the start of the liquidation stand at £390,080, the report, which covers the year to February 14, said.

Fees of £213,000 have also been paid to Leeds-based law firm Walker Morris connected to legal advice it has provided during the liquidation.

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