WAGS AT WAR
Rebekah Vardy accuses Coleen Rooney of ‘deliberately deceiving’ court over £1.8m costs in latest Wagatha showdown
Rebekah's lawyers claim eye-watering bill includes her team staying at five star hotel
COLEEN Rooney "deliberately deceived" the court over her £1.8million Wagatha Christie costs, Rebekah Vardy's lawyers claimed today.
The sensational allegation was made as the rival wags go head-to-head again today in an ongoing battle over costs.
5
5
Rebekah, 42, was ordered to pay 90 per cent of Coleen's costs after she sensationally lost the high-profile libel case.
Coleen, 38, forked out £1,833,906.89 to fight Rebekah in the high-profile libel case.
A judge could now decide to reduce the price Rebekah must pay if the amount is found to be unreasonable.
In the latest showdown over costs, lawyers for both women returned to the High Court today.
Jamie Carpenter KC, representing Rebekah, claimed the eye-watering total included costs for one of Coleen's team to stay at the five star Nobu Hotel.
The bill also included "substantial dinner and drinks charges as well as mini bar charges", he said.
Mr Carpenter claims Coleen's team used a "kitchen sink approach" when calculating the total and included "over £120,000 of costs to which Mrs Rooney has no entitlement".
He also accused Coleen of "deliberately deceiving” the court and Rebekah by underestimating costs and time working on the case.
Most read in Showbiz
Mr Carpenter believes Rebekah should not be forced to pay around £117,500 plus VAT for “expert fees” invoiced after the budget was agreed in August 2021.
He said the incurred costs should be reduced to £367,732.
Coleen Rooney reveals why she’ll never forgive Rebekah Vardy & reason she didn’t want Wagatha saga to go to trial
Robin Dunne, for Coleen, argued it was "frankly outrageous" to accuse them of dishonesty.
He alos said Rebekah had shown "deplorable conduct" in the case and and costs could have been lower if "she conducted this litigation appropriately".
The lawyer added: "This was a libel claim which Mrs Vardy chose to launch, despite knowing that the Instagram post was true.
"Mrs Vardy refused to engage with Mrs Rooney to try and avoid these proceedings and by her conduct meant that significant additional costs were required to be incurred by Mrs Rooney.
"It sits ill in Mrs Vardy's mouth to now claim that Mrs Rooney's costs, a great deal of which were caused directly by her conduct, are unreasonable."
But Senior Costs Judge Andrew Gordon-Saker said: "You can’t stand there throwing mud about them incurring costs if you’re not going to be upfront about your own.
“Even if you’ve decided you’re not going to seek to recover it, you’ve still incurred it.”
The Sun revealed today how Rebekah claims Coleen grossly inflated her £1.8million costs.
Rebekah brought the multi-million pound case to court after she was accused of leaking stories to the press.
But Coleen - wife of ex-England ace Wayne - won the epic libel battle in 2022 - bringing an end to the three-year saga.
The row erupted back in October 2019 when Coleen and accused Rebekah of sharing stories from her personal Instagram account.
In the infamous post, Coleen said she posted a string of false stories via her Instagram account with restricted access to see if they appeared in the media, which they did.
She then said the fake stories had only been viewed by one person, and ended dramatically: “It’s . . . Rebekah Vardy’s account.”
In return, Rebekah declared war and accused Coleen of destroying her reputation as she brought the libel case to court.
But her reputation and finances were left hanging in tatters after she was savaged by Mrs Justice Steyn in her ruling.
The judge said Rebekah "knew of, condoned and was actively engaged" in leaks to the media by her agent Caroline Watts.
She branded the mum-of-five's evidence as "manifestly inconsistent" but praised Coleen as an "honest and reliable" witness.
READ MORE SUN STORIES
Mrs Justice Steyn also found Rebekah deliberately destroyed evidence to cover up her deceit.
The hearing, which ends on Wednesday, continues.
5
5
5
Topics