Hearts and Partick Thistle have described themselves as “incredulous” at an SFA charge concerning their legal action against the SPFL.
The game’s governing body have decided to charge the SPFL duo with breaking disciplinary rule 78 – “No member or Associated Person shall take a dispute which is referable to arbitration in terms of Article 99 to a court of law except as expressly permitted by the terms of Article 99”.
If found guilty both clubs could be fined between £500-£1000 on the low end and a £1m fine and/or expulsion from the league on the high end [STV].
The charge comes after Hearts and Partick Thistle took the game’s professional body to the Court of Session before their legal challenge was referred to an arbitration panel convened by the SFA.
The basis of Hearts and Thistle’s legal battle concerns the ending of the league season in Scotland and their relegations from the Scottish Premiership and Championship respectively.
Similar disputes have found in favour of relegated clubs in France and Belgium and should the SFA arbitration panel rule against Hearts and Thistle, they can take their complaint one step further to the Court of Arbitration for Sport in Switzerland.
This is naturally being viewed as inflammatory by the two clubs who are fuming at the game’s governing body for the timing of the charges, calling the decision “oppressive”.
“We are incredulous to have received a Notice of Complaint from the Scottish FA in the circumstances,” reads a joint statement.
“It is oppressive of them to require submissions from both clubs by 20 July when we are, in terms of their own articles of association, actively engaged in arbitration.
“As our focus must be squarely on that, we have already requested the Scottish FA to review the timing to allow us to be properly prepared and represented.
“That is the very least we should expect from the process.”
Rangers demanded an independent investigation into the processes of the SPFL after the league-ending vote which saw Dundee’s vote changed after being submitted [Rangers].
This then led to Rangers producing a dossier of evidence with clubs across the SPFL voting on whether to launch the investigation.
Whilst this did not get the necessary support Hearts and Partick Thistle have been left with no choice but to pursue a legal battle for what they see as unfair relegation in the circumstances surrounding the coronavirus shutdown.
