Sports lawyer shares if West Ham United could sue Lucas Paqueta as FA charges emerge
West Ham United could “theoretically” sue Lucas Paqueta if he is found guilty of his alleged charges, but it would be an “unusual step”, according to Sam Cuthbert.
The FA announced that the Brazilian international has been charged with four alleged breaches of the betting rules in Premier League games between November 2022 and August 2023.
Although Paqueta has categorically denied the allegations, some have suggested the Irons could sue the midfielder for loss of earnings if found guilty but sports barrister Cuthbert has suggested that is unlikely to occur.
As quoted by The Athletic on Tuesday (28 May) he said: “In order to sue Paqueta, if he is found guilty, West Ham would have to identify that his contractual breaches led to the losses they’re seeking to recover.
“Without seeing his contract, it’s difficult to know the specific breaches pursuant to which West Ham may bring an action.
“The other point is that whilst it’s theoretically possible for West Ham to sue Paqueta, there is not a host of authorities on the point and it would be an unusual step.”
Will West Ham United star Lucas Paqueta be banned after FA charges?
It is clear that these charges levelled at Paqueta have massively impacted the Hammers’ transfer plans this summer as they were planning to sell the Brazilian to fund a summer rebuild under Julen Lopetegui’s management.
Such a move now appears to be incredibly unlikely as teams aren’t expected to act upon their interest now that there is a genuine chance Paqueta could be banned in the near future if these allegations are true.
The Irons could therefore argue that they have missed out on millions of pounds worth of income because they didn’t sell the Brazilian last summer, but is very rare that this sort of legal action is taken in the footballing world.
While most fans will be frustrated that arguably their most valuable asset has become worthless almost overnight, it seems as though there is little the Hammers can do other than hope that these allegations aren’t true.
In other West Ham news, the Hammers’ stance on Jarrod Bowen’s future amid transfer interest from Newcastle has emerged
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