Whatever the final outcome of Hammonds’ legal battle with The Football League, it is clear that the case, and the headlines it has generated, have spooked commercial law firms.
Leaving aside dedicated Hammonds-bashers, perhaps the most interesting element of the case is the issue of whether law firms can be held liable for advice they offer on non-legal issues. Since it is now a mantra of modern practice that law firms must be ‘commercial’, a finding against Hammonds on this point would surely give pause for thought.
