JEDDAH, 11 May 2005 — A judge in the General Court in Jeddah has dismissed a lawsuit lodged by Riyadh Golden Institution against Al-Ittihad club in Jeddah.
The institution is seeking SR60 million in compensation from Ittihad for huge losses incurred by the company as a result of the breach of contract on the part of Ittihad in the marketing and sale of Ittihad gold cards.
Ittihad legal representative presented in court documents to prove Ittihad violated no terms in the contract it entered with the institution. After reviewing the documents, the judge ruled the claim against Ittihad was without merit.
On the other hand, Ittihad will file a countersuit against the institution for trying to damage the club reputation. Ittihad said that the institution tried to put some pressure on them by using the press to air charges against the Jeddah-based club.
The media center manager for Ittihad club, Adnan Jastaneh, said that such claims should be settled through commercial court and not in the press. The lawyer for Riyadh golden institution, Abdullah Bawareth, said: “We did not exaggerate on our claim. We have all the documents that prove we spent a lot of money on advertising for Ittihad golden card. The advertising campaign was very expensive and it included advertising for the card in newspapers, TVs and on the street. Not cooperating with us from Ittihad club and the continuous use of the old membership card caused us huge losses”.
A source from Ittihad club said that the institution should have reviewed the contract before going to the press. He said that in case of disagreements, they should either go back to the contract or court and not to the press. The source said: “The institution should have respected the club that have large fans and the reputation.” He said that the case will not damage Ittihad reputation.
