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Aberdeen oilman Robert Kidd was taken to court after he failed to pay a relative a “success fee” due on a £20 million compensation award
Robert Kidd
(Image: Handout)
A Scots oil tycoon has been ordered to pay a family member more than £4.5 million by a judge in Dubai after a long-running feud.
Robert Kidd, a former boxer who became one of Scotland’s wealthiest men thanks to his oil firm, has been involved in a series of big-money court cases since his firm collapsed in 2013.
Now his relative Michael Forbes, a financial consultant, has won a court battle to get the £4.5million from Kidd after he advised him in an earlier case.
The row brings to an end a series of court cases that have rumbled on across courts in Scotland and the Middle East for the last decade.
Now Michael Forbes has vowed to take action to get the seven-figure sum he is owed by his relative Kidd after a final appeal against the Dubai court order failed.
Forbes told the Daily Record: ”The Dubai court has dismissed an appeal outright, confirming that none of the grounds had any real prospect of success.
“The Court’s findings were unequivocal, including that Mr Kidd was ‘a most unsatisfactory witness’ whose evidence was unreliable.
“Enforcement is now actively underway across multiple jurisdictions and, given that process, it would be inappropriate to comment further.
“The amount now due, including interest and costs, is significantly higher than the original award and recovery will be pursued in full. The claim is fully funded and will be taken through to conclusion.
“It would not be appropriate to comment on private family matters.”
Financial consultant Michael Forbes raised an action against Robert Kidd after helping him win a £20 million claim against Scots law firm Burness Paull at the Court of Session in Edinburgh.
Forbes is related to Kidd through marriage as his younger brother Lachlan Forbes is Kidd’s son-in-law and business associate. All three men are originally from Aberdeen.
It is understood the long running case has caused a major rift in the two families.
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Michael Forbes, 55, claimed he was due a “success fee” from his work on the Burness Paull case from wealthy oilman Kidd.
In 2009 the legal firm had acted for Kidd in the sale of a minority share of his North Sea oil and gas drilling firm ITS Tubular Solutions, to a US private equity firm Lime Rock for £34.5 million.
Kidd, 65, said he had suffered financial losses as a result of advice they gave him and was awarded the £20 million in 2018.
Forbes, who is based in Dubai, claimed Kidd had agreed to give him 20 percent of any damages in the case.
When Kidd failed to pay up he launched legal proceedings in November 2023 in the UAE to recover the money.
A payment of £4.59 million was initially awarded by Justice Sir Jeremy Cooke at Dubai International Financial Centre Courts (DIFC) last August.
But Kidd, who lives in Cyprus, has now been refused permission to appeal the verdict in the same court.
In a written decision judge Chief Justice Wayne Martin said: ”None of the proposed grounds of appeal has any real prospect of success and there is no other compelling reason why permission to appeal should be granted.”
Forbes claimed Kidd had entered into an agreement in January 2017 with his Dubai based financial services company SarCogent Solutions to represent him in the action against Burness Paull.
The agreement involved attending meetings with Kidd and his legal team in Cyprus, Glasgow and Edinburgh.
Kidd’s £20 million claim against law firm Burness Paull was settled on January 2018
The following month an invoice from SarCogent was sent to Kidd for around £3.96 million based on the 20 percent success fee.
However the invoice was marked “invalid and not accepted” by Kidd later that month and returned to SarCogent.
In his August decision Sir Jeremy Cooke said Forbes had been “essentially honest” in his evidence.
However he was critical of Kidd describing him “as a most unsatisfactory witness.”
Sir Jeremy concluded; ”His inconsistencies and disregard for the truth meant that his evidence was unreliable. I was unable to accept it.”
The Judge also found that Kidd’s Chief Financial Officer Fraser Clarkson, was “an even more unsatisfactory witness than Mr Kidd” and said some of his evidence “did not make sense.”
In his decision Sir Jeremy said he had “no hesitation” in coming to the conclusion that there was an agreed success fee.
Lachlan Forbes, who also lives in Cyprus, did not give evidence and was described in court as a close associate of Mr Kidd and married to one of his daughters.
Sir Jeremy said that was significant, given he was Kidd’s right hand man and had access to all of his emails.
The judge calculated the payment to Forbes as being 20 percent of the £20 million award to Kidd.
He also added nine percent interest from 16 February 2018. It meant the final award with interest totalled £4,599,352.
Kidd has also been told he must pay all Forbes legal costs in the case.
Former boxer Kidd, who grew up in an Aberdeen council estate, set up ITS in the late 80s with just £5000.
By 2008 the equipment rental firm was said to be worth £490million and employing around 1000 people.
By 2011 it was making annual profits in excess of £25million.
However the oil firm went into administration two years later with debts of £145 million.
In 2012 the Sunday Times listed Robert Kidd in their top 100 wealthiest Scots at 67th equal with Sir Sean Connery on £80million.
Over the years Kidd has launched several high-profile multi million pound lawsuits against former legal advisors and business partners.
Kidd claims the sale of his minority stake in ITS made his remaining shares worthless. He believes individuals and companies involved in the deal had a conflict of interest and breached their legal duties to him.
In 2022 he launched a £580 million Court of Session claim against Lime Rock, the firm he sold his minority stake in ITS to, and Scots solicitors Ledingham Chalmers.
If successful, the court action would have seen the largest payout awarded in Scottish legal history.
The figure, which included interest, was later revised down to £350 million and then £122 million.
In March 2024, the Court of Session in Edinburgh dismissed the claim.
The decision was upheld the following year after Kidd appealed.
Robert Kidd was approached for comment.
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