Scandal-hit Bell Pottinger pair weigh lawsuit

The two partners at the centre of the scandal that brought down shamed PR agency Bell Pottinger could sue the business, the Standard can reveal.

Former partners Victoria Geoghegan and Nick Lambert, who worked on the firm’s hugely controversial account for the billionaire Guptas in South Africa, have turned to Mishcon de Reya, the legal firm which represented Princess Diana during her divorce in 1995.

Lambert and Geoghegan confirmed to the Standard that they are considering their legal options over their departure from the firm, which has imploded in the past week.

“I haven’t decided what action I’m taking yet,” Geoghegan said.

She was fired in July while Lambert left in August after being suspended.

Serious doubt remains, however, over whether there will be anything left to sue with Bell Pottinger, expected to appoint administrators BDO as soon as today.

The scandal blew up earlier this year when the firm was attacked by South Africa’s Democratic Alliance opposition for stirring up racial tensions on behalf of the Guptas, allies of President Jacob Zuma, who have been accused of corruption. The row has prompted a exodus of clients and senior staff.

Sources said the pair had been “horribly caught in the crossfire” of the feud between founder Lord Bell and James Henderson, who resigned as chief executive 10 days ago.

Geoghegan, who is eight months pregnant, has come in for particular abuse from online trolls and been described as the “face of evil” in some media outlets.

A review by legal firm Herbert Smith Freehills said Bell Pottinger’s senior management “should have known that the campaign was at risk of causing offence, including on grounds of race”.

It added that the firm “ought to have exercised extreme care and should have closely scrutinised the creation of content for the campaign”.

The company was also expelled from the PR industry’s trade association, the most serious sanction open to it.