Carl Frampton ‘extremely happy’ with terms of settlement - Barry McGuigan also welcomes end of legal dispute

All litigation and counterclaims were stayed on confidential terms at the High Court in Belfast today.

Welcoming the end of the legal dispute, Mr Frampton said he was “extremely happy” with the terms of the settlement.

He described the past three-and-a-half years as “difficult but necessary”.

“I want to also pay tribute to my fans, my friends and my family who stood by me and supported me throughout,” the boxer said.

“None of this would have been possible without the amazing love and support of my children, and of course my extraordinary wife Christine.

“I am glad this chapter of my life is now behind me and my focus now, as always, remains on becoming a three weight world champion in 2021.”

A statement issued on behalf of Barry McGuigan and Cyclone Promotions confirmed the settlement was reached without any judgment on the merits of either side’s case.

It said the confidential agreement would avoid “the expense, burden and uncertainty associated with these proceedings”, as well as avoiding any future misunderstandings.

Mr McGuigan said: “We are satisfied with this settlement and I believe that my family and I can now move forward after a very difficult time in our personal lives.

“We are pleased to see this lawsuit come to an end.”

He added: “We feel that the mutual understanding between us and Carl Frampton will work in favour of both parties.

“We will now focus exclusively on what we do best, rather than spend time and money in the courtroom.”

The action ended after a marathon 19 days of evidence on the breakdown of a once-close relationship between two Irish legends in the sport.

Mr Frampton, 33, sued his ex-manager for alleged withheld earnings from big bouts staged in Northern Ireland, England and the United States.

He was claiming up to £6m against Cyclone Promotions UK Ltd - of which Mr McGuigan was a director - over purse fees, broadcasting rights, ticket sales and merchandising.

Lawyers for the Belfast fighter alleged that he had been signed up to a “slave contract”.

In a counter suit, Mr McGuigan claimed a one-time protege he had treated like a son was in breach of contract by quitting his Cyclone organisation in August 2017.

Both men denied any wrongdoing throughout the case.

A resolution in their acrimonious legal dispute was reached following the discovery of more than 10,000 emails potentially relevant to the case.

The court was previously told the electronic messages had either been lost or deleted from the Cyclone account.

But in an unexpected development, it emerged that masses of archived emails were found on the company’s systems last week.

Proceedings were adjourned to allow a “mammoth” trawl through all the newly-located material continued.

Mr Justice Huddleston was then notified last night that a settlement had been reached by consent.

An order drawn up today confirmed: “All further proceedings in these actions and counterclaims be stayed upon the terms set out in the signed and dated document entitled ‘Settlement of McGuigan v Frampton Litigation’.”