Labour Disputes
Texto da decisão
Decis ion of the
Dis pute Res olution Cham ber
passed in Zurich, Switzerland, on 8 March 2018,
in the following composition:
Geoff Thom ps on (England), Chairman
Johan v an Gaalen (S outh Africa), member
S tefano S artori (Italy ), member
Pav el Piv ov arov (Rus s ia), member
Muzam m il Bin Moham ed (S ingapore), member
on the claim presented by the player,
Play er A, Country B
as Claimant
against the club,
Club C, Country D
as Respondent
regarding an employment-related dispute
arisen between the parties
I.
Facts of the cas e
1.
On 15 August 2016, the Player of Country B, Player A (hereinafter: the
Claimant) and the Club of Country D, Club C (hereinafter: the Respondent),
signed an employment contract valid as from the date of signature until 30
June 2017.
2.
On 1 January 2017, the Claimant and the Respondent signed an “Additional
Agreement to the Contract dated 15 August 2016” (hereinafter: termination
agreement), by means of which “the Parties have agreed to prematurely
terminate the Contract […] dated 15.08.2016 by mutual consent from
01.01.2017”.
3.
In accordance with the termination agreement, the Respondent undertook
to pay to the Claimant the amounts of USD 300,000 and EUR 35,000.
4.
According to the termination agreement, it “shall enter into force upon
being properly signed by the Parties”.
5.
By letters dated 18 July 2017 and 5 October 2017, the Claimant put the
Respondent in default of payment of USD 300,000 and EUR 35,000.
6.
On 13 September 2017, the Claimant lodged a claim against the Respondent
in front of FIFA asking that the Respondent be ordered to pay to him the
amounts of USD 300,000 and EUR 35,000, corresponding to the amounts
provided in the settlement agreement.
7.
The Claimant further asked to be awarded 5% interest p.a. as of 1 February
2017, in particular, “the dates these amounts became due – until the day of
effective payment”.
8.
Despite having been invited by FIFA to provide its comments on the present
matter, the Respondent did not answer to the Claimant’s claim.
II.
Cons iderations of the Dis pute Res olution Cham ber
1.
First of all, the Dispute Resolution Chamber (hereinafter also referred to as
Chamber or DRC) analysed whether it was competent to deal with the
matter at stake. In this respect, the DRC took note that the present matter
was submitted to FIFA on 13 September 2017. Consequently, the DRC
concluded that the 2017 edition of the Rules Governing the Procedures of
the Players’ Status Committee and the Dispute Resolution Chamber
(hereinafter: the Procedural Rules) is applicable to the matter at hand (cf.
art. 21 of the Procedural Rules).
Player A, Country B / Club C, Country D
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2.
Subsequently, the members of the Chamber referred to art. 3 par. 1 of the
Procedural Rules and confirmed that in accordance with art. 24 par. 1 in
combination with art. 22 lit. b) of the Regulations on the Status and
Transfer of Players (edition 2018) the DRC is competent to deal with the
matter at stake, which concerns an employment–related dispute with an
international dimension between a Player of Country B and a Club of
Country D.
3.
Furthermore, the DRC analysed which edition of the Regulations on the
Status and Transfer of Players should be applicable as to the substance of
the matter. In this respect, the DRC confirmed that in accordance with art.
26 par. 1 and par. 2 of said Regulations (edition 2018) and considering that
the present claim was lodged in front of FIFA on 13 September 2017, the
2016 edition of the Regulations on the Status and Transfer of Players
(hereinafter: the Regulations) is applicable to the matter at hand as to the
substance.
4.
The competence of the DRC and the applicable regulations having been
established, the members of the Chamber entered into the substance of the
matter. In this respect, the Chamber started by acknowledging all the
above-mentioned facts as well as the arguments and the documentation
submitted by the parties. However, the Chamber emphasised that in the
following considerations it will refer only to the facts, arguments and
documentary evidence, which it considered pertinent for the assessment of
the matter at hand.
5.
In this respect, the DRC acknowledged that, following the conclusion of an
employment contract on 15 August 2016, which was set to expire on 30
June 2017, the Claimant and the Respondent signed a termination
agreement, on 1 January 2017, by means of which the Respondent
undertook to pay to the Claimant the amounts of USD 300,000 and EUR
35,000 without further specifying any due dates.
6.
In continuation, the members of the Chamber noted that, according to the
Claimant, the Respondent had failed to pay the above-mentioned amounts
and, consequently, he put the Respondent in default of payment of said
sums for the first time on 18 July 2017.
7.
Furthermore, the Chamber took note that the Respondent, for its part,
failed to present its response to the claim of the Claimant, despite having
been invited to do so. In this way, the Chamber deemed, the Respondent
renounced its right to defence and, thus, accepted the allegations of the
Claimant.
8.
Moreover, and as a consequence of the aforementioned consideration, the
Chamber established that in accordance with art. 9 par. 3 of the Procedural
Rules it shall take a decision upon the basis of the documents already on
file.
Player A, Country B / Club C, Country D
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9.
Having said that, the members of the Chamber underlined that it remained
uncontested that the Respondent, after having signed the termination
agreement has not fulfilled the contractual obligations set forth therein and
failed to pay to the Claimant the amounts of USD 300,000 and EUR 35,000.
10.
On account of the above considerations and the documentation on file, the
DRC decided that, in accordance with the general legal principle of “pacta
sunt servanda”, the Respondent is liable to pay the amounts of USD 300,000
and EUR 35,000 to the Claimant.
11.
Having established the foregoing, and with regards to the Claimant’s
request for the payment of interest on said sums, the Chamber was of the
opinion that, given the absence of due dates in the termination agreement,
the Claimant was entitled to 5% interest p.a. as of the date of his first
default notice of 18 July 2017.
12.
The Chamber concluded its deliberations in the present matter by rejecting
any further claim of the Claimant.
III.
Decis ion of the Dis pute Res olution Cham ber
1.
The claim of the Claimant, Player A, is partially accepted.
2.
The Respondent, Club C, has to pay to the Claimant, w ithin 30 day s as
from the date of notification of this decision, outstanding remuneration in
the amounts of USD 300,000 and EUR 35,000, plus 5% interest p.a. as from
18 July 2017 until the date of effective payment.
3.
In the event that the above-mentioned amounts plus interest due to the
Claimant are not paid by the Respondent within the stated time limit, the
present matter shall be submitted, upon request, to the FIFA Disciplinary
Committee for consideration and a formal decision.
4.
Any further claim lodged by the Claimant is rejected.
Player A, Country B / Club C, Country D
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5.
The Claimant is directed to inform the Respondent immediately and directly
of the account number to which the remittances are to be made and to
notify the Dispute Resolution Chamber of every payment received.
*****
Note relating to the m otiv ated decis ion (legal remedy):
According to art. 58 par. 1 of the FIFA Statutes, this decision may be appealed
against before the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS). The statement of appeal
must be sent to the CAS directly within 21 days of receipt of notification of this
decision and shall contain all the elements in accordance with point 2 of the
directives issued by the CAS, a copy of which we enclose hereto. Within another
10 days following the expiry of the time limit for filing the statement of appeal,
the appellant shall file a brief stating the facts and legal arguments giving rise to
the appeal with the CAS (cf. point 4 of the directives).
The full address and contact numbers of the CAS are the following:
Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS)
Avenue de Beaumont 2
CH-1012 Lausanne
Switzerland
Tel: +41 21 613 50 00
Fax: +41 21 613 50 01
e-mail: [email protected]
www.tas-cas.org
For the Dispute Resolution Chamber:
Omar Ongaro
Football Regulatory Director
Encl.: CAS directives
Player A, Country B / Club C, Country D
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