Legal fight for club sharing of Olympic Stadium

The League One football club, which wants a ground-share at the £429m venue, has asked for permission for a judicial review of the bid process.

He said: “The rules of the bidding process created by the London Legacy Development Corporation (LLDC) we do not believe provided for teaming, which is for all parties to share the stadium.

“It is our legal opinion that this is a fundamental flaw of the bidding process. We have gone to the High Court to have the decision struck out.”

The LLDC board, which is tasked with sorting out the stadium’s future, named West Ham as the number one choice to move Olympic Stadium in December.

A LLDC spokesman said: “We have been notified that Leyton Orient have made the decision to issue proceedings for judicial review.

“Whilst this is disappointing, we believe that our processes have been robust, fair and transparent and that the challenge is misconceived.”

Mr Hearn argues that the process did not allow Leyton Orient to make an effective case for a ground-share.

Ground-sharing is something that “lots of clubs” in Europe do, he suggested.

Mr Hearn said he felt “very confident” now the application to kick-start another legal battle over the future of the showpiece venue in Stratford, east London, has been made.

He had no idea how long the matter would take to get to court or to be resolved.

The original deal for West Ham to take over the stadium collapsed in 2011 owing to 
legal challenges from 
Tottenham Hotspur and Leyton Orient.

A deal with West Ham would see the club move two miles from their 35,000-capacity stadium at Upton Park in the 2016-17 season.