Webster’s Def.: Law Suit—See America’s Cup

Biff Slogs Through the Tedious Legal Stuff:

Lawsuits and the America’s Cup go hand-in-sailing glove, it seems, with no end in sight. Who’s doing the suing? Hint: It ain’t the winners!

Now, we have the spectacle of another USA suit against the winning America’s Cup team. Since suing and the USA also go hand-in-hand (sailing glove to sailing glove), it isn’t all that surprising. Ample supplies of sour grapes abound worldwide in ANY COMPETITIVE SPORT.

Today, it seems, BMW Oracle Racing (Larry Ellison), moves ahead with his suit launched by the Golden Gate Yacht Club (GGYC) against Team Alinghi’s Ernesto Bertarelli regarding the newest Protocol (overall binding rules for the next match races).

Some say: Wouldn’t it be cheaper of these two Super Businessmen just got into a boxing ring and duked it out once and for all?

Back in July the law firm of Latham & Watkins, LLP, representing GGYC, presented the formal legal challenge to the Societe Nautique Geneve (SNG), the Defender Alinghi’s long-standing and supportive Swiss yacht club for America’s Cup 33 in 2009. Plaintiff GGYC gave SNG, the Defendant (and, oddly, Defender), 30 days to answer their challenge in the Supreme Court (it’s the local court, by the way, and not very supreme) of the State of New York, County of New York.

In a nutshell, GGYC says the Spanish yacht club “Club Nautico Espanol de Vela” (CNEV) - - the first 2009 challenger (they issued their challenge, apparently, TWO DAYS BEFORE the America’s Cup's final gun, in doing so they guaranteed themselves the coveted title of Challenger of Record (a.k.a. leader of ALL the challengers) - - FAILED to meet the requirements of the1887, that’s 1 8 8 7, Deed of Gift, the trust instrument (mostly) governing the Cup (mostly, subject to amendments and assorted legal challenges/threats/whatever).

The USA yacht club challenged the Spanish club’s validity, saying in the court papers: CNEV is a “brand new yacht club that it had never had an annual regatta before it was specifically created to collaborate with SNG… (and they) sponsored a sham annual regatta for children.” (At least, the GGYC should be the Challenger of Record, it says, because it hosts an annual regatta called the “Sea Weed Soup Perpetual Trophy” in San Francisco harbor, it claims.) One could ask: “It this regatta a real race between consenting yachts?”

Second, GGYC claims the new Protocol document fails to specify that the next Cup challenge’s venue, date and boat design (true), giving Team Alinghi a head start in its preparations over all competitors. (That’s probably true, since the Protocol notes dates when it will be issuing these specifics LATER this year.)

Third, GGYC elaborates on how the Defender appears to be negotiating with itself (Defender and SNG, Swiss to Spanish) on the resulting Protocol, since most rights of the Challengers have been retained by the Defender, or by the Defender selected America’s Cup Management (ACM) organization, the Defender appointed Race Committee, Measurement Committee Umpires, you get the idea.

SNG, Alinghi and ACM respond to all this, saying it’s “very disappointed” that BMW Oracle Racing has moved ahead with their legal challenge. SNG indicates they want the next race to be “even better,” with a new class of boat that showcases new technologies and exciting racin, in an even higher profiled event, comparable with the world’s best sporting events. (This may rub Louis Vuitton the wrong way, since they just pulled the plug on their long-standing sponsorship of the Challenger regattas.)

SNG continues: “Larry Ellison is holding the Cup to ransom for competitive gain…. He lost on the water in 2003 and in 2007.”

In the words of Alinghi Skipper Brad Butterworth: “He (Larry) is now pretending to be the good guy, representing the interests of all stakeholders, whereas in reality they have gone to court to force an earlier private match on their terms without the involvement of other competitors.”

He goes on to note: “While their legal teams are busy destabilizing the 33rd Cup and the preparations of the existing challengers, they are simultaneously snapping up sailors left, right and center. These underhand(ed) tactics make it particularly hard for the small teams who rely on sponsorship, which is very heard to secure under these circumstances, and shows disregard for all (of) the legitimate competitors.”

The fun continues shore-side. On the water, bet all of the skippers are making preparations for WHATEVER races they face in the months ahead. AC or no AC, these guys know how to retain their racing edge by racing in regattas worldwide, in boats large and small, matching boat for boat their worldwide (and jealous) competitors.