Introduction.

On 30 January 2008, the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) rendered its judgment in what is commonly referred to as the "Webster case." This case revolves around the question of the amount of the compensation that the player Webster must pay to his former club, Heart of Midlothian F.C. (hereinafter "Hearts") for breaching his contract with that Scottish club prematurely and unilaterally after the expiry of the Protected Period.

In an extensively argued decision, CAS reached the conclusion that Webster must pay the residual value of the contract (between Webster and Hearts) as compensation. The judgment stated that in the course of the session, the parties reached agreement on the amount of that residual value: 150,000 [pounds sterling].

Principally, CAS considered that Article 17 of the FIFA Regulations for the Status and Transfer of Players (hereinafter the "FIFA Regulations"), under which Webster breached his contract, is not an exception to the main rule that contracts may not be unilaterally terminated, and therefore cannot be seen as a provision allowing a club or a player to unilaterally terminate a contract, without grounds, whether during or after the Protected Period. Termination of a contract under Article 17 can be seen as wrongful breach of contract, and as such Webster must pay compensation to Hearts.

On the issue of the determination of the amount of the compensation for breach of contract, CAS considers that priority must be given to the provisions in that area in the contract in question. If the contract has no provisions in that area (which was the case with Webster's contract), the amount of the compensation must be determined based on the criteria in Article 17 of the FIFA Regulations, which refer to the law of the country in question, the specificity of the sport and other criteria, with the most important factors being the player's remaining salary under the existing contract, the transfer sum that the player's old club may have to pay (spread out over the entire term of the contract) and whether the breach of contract was within or after the Protected Period.

CAS considers that which of these aspects must be considered in the specific case in the determination of the amount of the compensation to be paid depends on the circumstances of the breach (during or after the...