SJ Berwin scores win for Chelsea

CITY FIRM SJ Berwin & Co helped clear Premiership football team Chelsea when it was charged with misconduct over a pitch invasion after an FA Cup match.

The club faced disciplinary action because its fans ran onto the pitch following defeat in the game against First Division Millwall in February.

Berwins litigation partner Ian Insley and assistants David Rose and Neil Blundell handled the case for Chelsea, briefing counsel Michael Beloff QC and Tim Kerr.

The club's legal team convinced the five-man FA Commission of Inquiry that Chelsea had done as much as it could to avert the invasion.

Insley says: "The procedure is a little more informal than a court. It is different because in a court you know what the rules will be."

Berwins has a thriving sports practice, headed by partner Peter McInerny, which has interests in Formula One racing and sailing as well as football.

McInerny says: "We have been developing this for some years. The work crosses a whole range of disciplines but the core tends to be sports sponsorship."

Berwins acted for Chelsea in its sponsorship deal with Coors lager, and also for Diadora league club Chesham when it complained to the league about another side's conduct.