It's not often that lawyers can claim that their work has been a
decisive factor in winning a world championship but that's what
recently happened to Simon Taylor, motorsport expert at regional
heavyweight law firm Freeth Cartwright.
With over 25 years experience of dealing with high-profile motor
sport disputes Simon has been retained by the Chevrolet World
Touring Car Team (operated by Ray Mallock Limited - one of the
leading motorsport organisations) for a number of years.
Simon has been working closely with the Chevrolet team since
July 2010, representing the team at numerous hearings during the
World Touring Car Championship at race weekends throughout Europe
and the Far East.
In particular, in November, Simon successfully appealed to the
International Court of Appeal of the FIA (motorsport's governing
body) against a decision of race stewards during a round of the
Championship which had allowed a rival team - BMW - to race with an
illegal 6 speed sequential gear box and therefore gain a
significant performance advantage. The appeal was lodged on
the basis that the six speed gear box was not permitted by the
regulations.
The appeal was successful and as a result, the BMW drivers were
excluded from the results of the relevant races in Japan. This
meant that the Chevrolet driver Yvan Muller won the Drivers'
Championship on the day of the hearing and as a result of the
appeal.
The race stewards had originally allowed BMW to use the
sequential gear box because it had been approved previously for use
by a disabled driver (Alex Zanardi). However the FIA unequivocally
supported Simon's submissions that the BMW cars did not comply with
the technical regulations of the Championship and emphasised that
in order to safeguard the principle of fairness between competitors
the regulations must be adhered to.
The whole process was dealt with from start to finish in eight
working days.
Simon Taylor says:
"The timescale was such that it was really hard work but I was
delighted with the result. The team wanted to win the Championship
on the circuit, not in Court, but that decision was taken out of
their hands when BMW chose to compete with cars that did not comply
with the regulations."
Ray Mallock, Team owner, said:
"Many thanks for the amazing way and staggering dedication Simon
showed in winning this case. He was the difference between success
and failure."