Two top North West lawyers have teamed up with Coleen Rooney as she defends herself in the "Wagatha Christie" libel trial that is currently being held at the High Court.
Paul Lunt and Jamie Hurworth both work for the law firm Brabners and are based in the company's Liverpool office. The law firm was hired by Rooney's team following the aftermath of her social media post on October 9, 2019, in which she accused Rebekah Vardy's Instagram account of leaking her personal stories to the press.
Mrs Vardy, the wife of Leicester City striker Jamie Vardy, is suing Mrs Rooney, wife of former Everton forward Wayne Rooney, for libel following the social media post. The case, which has been ongoing for just under a week, has hit the headlines on a number of occasions with Mrs Vardy leaving court in tears at one stage during proceedings, Business Live reports.
READ MORE: Woman told men there were 'no boundaries' as she organised rape of little girl
Brabners was involved in Ben Stokes' acquittal of affray in August 2018 and his successful breach of privacy claim against The S*n. Paul Lunt is a commercial litigation partner at Brabners having joined in September 1994.
He has acted for clients in sporting arbitrations, regulatory disciplinary proceedings and High Court civil claims. Mr Lunt has also represented national governing bodies, prominent sports clubs, Premiership footballers, Ryder Cup golfers, England international cricketers and Olympic medallists.
His clients include The Rugby Football League, Nichols Plc (Vimto), TJ Morris (Home Bargains), Arnold Clark, Chester Racecourse and Phoenix Sports Management. He also advises on media-related issues, including defamation/privacy, and intellectual property matters.
Mr Lunt has been head of litigation since 2010. Jamie Hurworth first joined Brabners as a trainee solicitor in September 2015 and became an associate in May 2019.
He was then promoted to senior associate the following year. According to Brabners' website, Mr Hurworth is a commercial litigator who handles a broad range commercial disputes such as director, shareholder and joint venture disputes, contractual claims, professional negligence actions and defamation cases.
He acts for a wide variety of organisations and individuals in the private sector. He also deals with urgent injunctions and handles alternative forms of dispute resolution such as international arbitration.