{"id":156658,"date":"2026-06-07T16:04:23","date_gmt":"2026-06-07T23:04:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/?p=156658"},"modified":"2026-06-07T16:04:23","modified_gmt":"2026-06-07T23:04:23","slug":"what-action-will-the-icc-take-against-the-three-lawyers-who-engaged-in-blatant-malpractice-leading-to-growing-tension-between-icc-and-sri-lanka","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/2026\/06\/07\/what-action-will-the-icc-take-against-the-three-lawyers-who-engaged-in-blatant-malpractice-leading-to-growing-tension-between-icc-and-sri-lanka\/","title":{"rendered":"What action will the ICC take against the three lawyers who engaged in blatant malpractice leading to growing tension between ICC and Sri Lanka?"},"content":{"rendered":"<h2><span style=\"color: #0000ff;\"><em>Senaka Weeraratna<\/em><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n<p>The International Cricket Council (ICC) has <strong>not announced any formal disciplinary or legal actions<\/strong> against the three specific legal and administrative figures\u2014<strong>David Becker<\/strong> (former Head of Legal), <strong>Jonathan Hall<\/strong> (General Counsel), and <strong>David Richardson<\/strong> (former CEO)\u2014implicated by critics in the ongoing dispute over the Umpire Decision Review System (DRS). [<a href=\"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/2026\/05\/30\/if-icc-lawyers-have-blundered-giving-sub-standard-flawed-legal-advice-on-the-origins-of-player-referral-what-are-the-remedies-available-to-improve-iccs-image\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">1<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/2026\/05\/30\/jonathan-hall-counsel-for-icc-has-given-flawed-legal-advice-on-authorship-of-player-referral-drs-claiming-that-it-was-the-work-of-an-unnamed-and-undisclosed-employee-of-icc-or-a-contractor-but-not\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">2<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/2026\/06\/05\/re-icc-liable-for-professional-criminal-negligence-and-fraud-for-deliberate-misrepresentation-of-fact-on-drs-authorship-claims\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">3<\/a>]<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The growing geopolitical and institutional tension stems from allegations that these advisors provided flawed legal counsel that actively ignored the <strong>Doctrine of Constructive Notice<\/strong> to deny Sri Lankan lawyer <strong>Senaka Weeraratna<\/strong> the intellectual property and naming rights for inventing the &#8220;Player Referral&#8221; concept in 1997. [<a href=\"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/2026\/05\/29\/drs-jonathan-hall-general-counsel-icc-like-david-becker-head-legal-icc-has-submitted-that-icc-was-totally-unaware-of-senaka-weeraratnas-prior-work-completely-overlooking-the-doctrine-o\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">1<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/2026\/05\/30\/if-icc-lawyers-have-blundered-giving-sub-standard-flawed-legal-advice-on-the-origins-of-player-referral-what-are-the-remedies-available-to-improve-iccs-image\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">2<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/2026\/06\/05\/re-icc-liable-for-professional-criminal-negligence-and-fraud-for-deliberate-misrepresentation-of-fact-on-drs-authorship-claims\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">3<\/a>]<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>While public intellectuals, legal advocates, and South Asian sports bodies are aggressively demanding accountability for what they label professional malpractice, any definitive remedies remain a matter of institutional pressure rather than finalized ICC sanctions. [<a href=\"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/2026\/05\/29\/drs-jonathan-hall-general-counsel-icc-like-david-becker-head-legal-icc-has-submitted-that-icc-was-totally-unaware-of-senaka-weeraratnas-prior-work-completely-overlooking-the-doctrine-o\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">1<\/a>]<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Demanded Actions and Legal Remedies Against the Counsel [<a href=\"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/2026\/06\/05\/re-icc-liable-for-professional-criminal-negligence-and-fraud-for-deliberate-misrepresentation-of-fact-on-drs-authorship-claims\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">1<\/a>]<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Because the ICC continues to rely on its legal team&#8217;s position that the governing body was unaware of Weeraratna\u2019s prior art, critics and Sri Lankan legal advocates have publicly outlined the specific avenues available to hold the three lawyers accountable: [<a href=\"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/2026\/06\/05\/the-sri-lankan-lawyer-who-fundamentally-rattled-the-icc-down-to-its-knees-in-a-manner-that-has-never-happened-before-in-cricket-history\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">1<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/2026\/05\/29\/drs-jonathan-hall-general-counsel-icc-like-david-becker-head-legal-icc-has-submitted-that-icc-was-totally-unaware-of-senaka-weeraratnas-prior-work-completely-overlooking-the-doctrine-o\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">2<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/2026\/05\/30\/if-icc-lawyers-have-blundered-giving-sub-standard-flawed-legal-advice-on-the-origins-of-player-referral-what-are-the-remedies-available-to-improve-iccs-image\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">3<\/a>]<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Bar Association Disciplinary Complaints:<\/strong> Sri Lankan advocates suggest filing formal ethical misconduct complaints directly with the respective regulatory bodies governing the attorneys, such as the Legal Practice Council in South Africa or equivalent bar associations, for failing professional due diligence.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Independent Internal Reviews:<\/strong> There are heavy domestic calls for the ICC to appoint an independent audit panel to evaluate the legal advice historically given, which critics claim constitutes a &#8220;deliberate misrepresentation of fact&#8221; following discoveries that physical dossiers on the system were handed to the ICC in 2008 and 2009.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Professional Negligence Lawsuits:<\/strong> Legal experts note that the ICC itself has the option to pursue a civil malpractice lawsuit or launch professional indemnity insurance claims against its past counsel to recoup any financial or reputational damages brought about by the flawed legal opinions. [, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/2026\/06\/05\/re-icc-liable-for-professional-criminal-negligence-and-fraud-for-deliberate-misrepresentation-of-fact-on-drs-authorship-claims\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">4<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/2026\/05\/29\/south-african-lawyer-david-beckers-negligence-and-oversight-of-fundamental-principles-of-law-as-a-legal-adviser-of-the-icc\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">5<\/a>]<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Context of the ICC-Sri Lanka Tension<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The friction has escalated from a private intellectual property dispute into a larger geopolitical issue. The ICC\u2019s legal defense maintains that the system belongs to the organization because it was engineered by third-party contractors. [<a href=\"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/2026\/05\/29\/drs-jonathan-hall-general-counsel-icc-like-david-becker-head-legal-icc-has-submitted-that-icc-was-totally-unaware-of-senaka-weeraratnas-prior-work-completely-overlooking-the-doctrine-o\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">1<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/2026\/05\/30\/jonathan-hall-counsel-for-icc-has-given-flawed-legal-advice-on-authorship-of-player-referral-drs-claiming-that-it-was-the-work-of-an-unnamed-and-undisclosed-employee-of-icc-or-a-contractor-but-not\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">2<\/a>]<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>However, Weeraratna\u2019s camp argues this ignores global copyright treaties (like the Berne Convention), which protect the original architect&#8217;s moral right to attribution. The refusal to accord credit to a South Asian pioneer has sparked solidarity from broader legal and cricketing circles across India, Pakistan, and Bangladesh, placing significant pressure on the ICC&#8217;s moral authority in the region. [<a href=\"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/2026\/05\/28\/icc-received-flawed-legal-opinion-from-its-lawyers-on-drs-what-are-the-remedies-available-to-sri-lanka-to-undo-a-global-scale-injustice-caused-to-a-sri-lankan-inventor\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">1<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/2026\/05\/29\/drs-jonathan-hall-general-counsel-icc-like-david-becker-head-legal-icc-has-submitted-that-icc-was-totally-unaware-of-senaka-weeraratnas-prior-work-completely-overlooking-the-doctrine-o\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">2<\/a>]<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>If you want to track how this dispute progresses, please let me know if you would like me to look into:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>The <strong>specific legal evidence<\/strong> regarding the 2008 physical dossiers handed to the ICC.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>The <strong>official statements<\/strong> or responses released by Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) or the Ministry of Sports regarding state-backed diplomatic intervention.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>How the <strong>Doctrine of Constructive Notice<\/strong> applies to international sports law. [<a href=\"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/2026\/06\/05\/the-sri-lankan-lawyer-who-fundamentally-rattled-the-icc-down-to-its-knees-in-a-manner-that-has-never-happened-before-in-cricket-history\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">1<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/2026\/06\/05\/re-icc-liable-for-professional-criminal-negligence-and-fraud-for-deliberate-misrepresentation-of-fact-on-drs-authorship-claims\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">2<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/2026\/05\/29\/drs-jonathan-hall-general-counsel-icc-like-david-becker-head-legal-icc-has-submitted-that-icc-was-totally-unaware-of-senaka-weeraratnas-prior-work-completely-overlooking-the-doctrine-o\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">3<\/a>]<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/share.google\/aimode\/s9aEDynxWROBvbJr4\">https:\/\/share.google\/aimode\/s9aEDynxWROBvbJr4<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Source:&nbsp; AI Overview<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Senaka Weeraratna The International Cricket Council (ICC) has not announced any formal disciplinary or legal actions against the three specific legal and administrative figures\u2014David Becker (former Head of Legal), Jonathan Hall (General Counsel), and David Richardson (former CEO)\u2014implicated by critics in the ongoing dispute over the Umpire Decision Review System (DRS). [1, 2, 3] The [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[165],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-156658","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-senaka-weeraratna"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/156658","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=156658"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/156658\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":156659,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/156658\/revisions\/156659"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=156658"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=156658"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=156658"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}