Former Yodel owner probably forged mother’s signature in takeover bid, judge rules
The former owner of Yodel probably forged his mother’s signature in an attempt to seize back control of the parcel delivery company, according to an “extraordinary” ruling issued on Friday by a high court judge.Jacob Corlett, a 31-year-old logistics entrepreneur, launched a takeover of Yodel in January 2024, buying the financially distressed company for £1 as part of a plan to merge it with his own parcels company, Shift.Within six months, Yodel was unable to pay its debts to HM Revenue and Customs and commercial partners, forcing Corlett to sell the business – also for £1 – to another company called Judge Logistics Ltd (JLL) in June 2024.Earlier this year, the Polish parcel locker company InPost bought JLL in a £106m deal.After a suit brought against him by Yodel, including for breach of fiduciary duty during his time as a director, Corlett launched an unsuccessful counterclaim intended to regain control of Yodel.
The claim alleged that, at the time Yodel was sold to JLL, Corlett owned warrants granting companies owned by him a majority stake in the business.Yodel disputed the authenticity of the documents in court, producing forensic handwriting analysis that cast doubt on the veracity of witness signatures that Corlett said had been provided by his mother, Tamara Gregory.The documents, supposedly signed during a breakfast meeting at Corlett’s Liverpool flat, two days before JLL’s takeover, were written using three different pens, according to the evidence.The judge, Mr Justice Fancourt, concluded that Corlett probably forged his mother’s initials after he had lost control of the company, to make it look as if she had witnessed the warrant document that Corlett claimed gave him control of it.In court, Gregory claimed that she had signed the documents herself but had written a “scrappy” signature, using initials rather than a longer version, because she was pushed for time and was angry and upset.
Fancourt ruled: “The conclusion to be drawn from this evidence is reinforced by the evidence of the handwriting expert witnesses, which was to the effect that the signatures on the documents in dispute were suspicious, showed many signs of forgery, and probably were forged,”He said Gregory’s evidence was “an attempt by a loving mother to help her son, who was in a very difficult position of his own making”,He also found that Corlett had “not given a moment’s thought” to how trade creditors, landlords and HMRC would have their debts repaid and that his attempt to take control of the company would have prevented it from receiving rescue funding,“Mr Corlett advanced in cross-examination a number of discreditable explanations of these exchanges, which were untrue and, characteristically, moulded to try somehow to fit the indisputable facts,” he added,Michael Rouse, the chief executive of InPost, which now owns Yodel, said: “This is an extraordinary judgment that demonstrates the lengths Corlett was prepared to go in order to extract money from Yodel.
“This judgment is a total vindication of our position and protects the integrity of our share capital,It ensures that our current shareholders, partners, and the thousands of people who work for Yodel can continue to focus on delivering for our customers without the distraction of these meritless and dishonest claims,“Following these findings of forgery, Yodel is considering further legal action,We will continue to pursue our existing claims for breach of duty and misappropriation of funds against those involved to ensure the company and its creditors are fully protected,”The Guardian has approached Shift, where Corlett is the chief executive and founder, for comment.
Retailers hope ‘panic weekend’ will bring Christmas cheer to UK sales
Retailers are hoping for a last-minute dash for the shops this weekend after a lacklustre run-up to Christmas, with UK households forecast to spend £3.4bn, up more than 12% on the same weekend in 2024.Almost 50m shopping trips will be made by last-minute Father Christmases over the weekend, according to research by analysts GlobalData for Vouchercodes.co.uk, the vast majority of which will be to retail destinations including high streets and shopping malls
Why is Truth Social owner Trump Media merging with a fusion energy firm?
Trump Media & Technology Group, owner of Donald Trump’s social media platform, Truth Social, announced a merger on Wednesday with a company developing fusion energy technology.TAE Technologies, an energy company founded in 1998, will join with Trump Media via a $6bn merger that it promises will propel it to build “the world’s first utility-scale fusion power plant” next year.The move signals that the president and his family continue to look for profit-seeking ventures outside of Truth Social, which remains tiny compared with rival platforms such as Facebook, Instagram and X (formerly Twitter).Here is what we know about the deal so far.The media company, which has dabbled in financial services, is engineering a huge pivot and diving headfirst into nuclear energy
Elon Musk’s massive 2018 Tesla pay package restored by Delaware court
Elon Musk’s controversial $56bn pay package from Tesla was reinstated by the Delaware supreme court on Friday, two years after a lower court struck down the vast compensation deal as “unfathomable”.The reinstated pay package could be worth as much as $139bn today, according to the New York Times. The decision comes less than two months after Tesla shareholders approved a new plan that could be worth $1tn to Musk, already the world’s richest person, in a decade’s time. Musk’s fortune currently stands at an estimated $600bn.Rescinding the pay deal would be “inequitable”, and would leave Musk “uncompensated for his time and efforts over a period of six years”, the Delaware supreme court justices wrote, echoing arguments from Tesla board members earlier this year
‘A black hole’: families and police say tech giants delay investigations in child abuse and drug cases
Max Osterman was 18 when he connected with a drug dealer on Snapchat who used the handle skyhigh.303. Max would message him whenever he wanted to buy Percocet, and they would meet. After about a year, and just days after their last exchange, Max collapsed. The pills he ordered had been laced with fentanyl
Australia close on Ashes victory over England on day four of third Test – as it happened
Ok, that’s enough from this page for one day, I’ll see you back here when the caravan pitches up in Melbourne. Time to redirect you to the more considered content from the likes of Geoff Lemon, Barney Ronay, and first, Ali Martin.“Maybe I’m clutching at straws but surely managing to take the third Test into the fifth day constitutes a moral victory for England in the Ashes?” pleads Colum Fordham. “Ah how sweet is the taste of victory!”Jim Lines asks the question that once began as a taunt but must now be given serious sporting (if not financial) consideration. “With the anomalous exception of 2010/11, the Aussie-hosted Ashes have been embarrassingly one-sided for decades
Australia on cusp of Ashes triumph as Nathan Lyon dulls England’s glimmer of hope
There was a time when England players threw around phrases like “the more the better”, such was their confidence in the chase. But tasked with knocking off a world record 435 runs to stop Australia winning this Ashes series at the earliest opportunity, one suspects similar words were not uttered on Saturday.Instead, having picked up six cheap wickets first thing to set up this unlikely five-session challenge, it was first about seeing where they could get to by stumps. The upshot was 206 for six from 63 overs which, while progress of sorts on this malfunctioning tour, means Australia will go into the final day of this third Test within touching distance of an unassailable 3-0 lead.Still, Pat Cummins and his men seem like a patient bunch
TikTok signs Trump-backed deal to avoid US ban
What will your life look like in 2035?
Facebook tests charging users to share links in potential blow for news outlets
AI boom has caused same CO2 emissions in 2025 as New York City, report claims
Third of UK citizens have used AI for emotional support, research reveals
From Nvidia to OpenAI, Silicon Valley woos Westminster as ex-politicians take tech firm roles