A LIBERTY Stadium wrangle has left Swansea Council with a legal bill of almost £100,000, the Post can reveal.
The authority spent £97,749 on Dolmans Solicitors for specialist advice in a matter involving several, unnamed parties.
It initially declined to disclose the sum following a Freedom of Information request by the Post, citing an exemption under the law.
But it changed its mind after this paper asked it to review its decision, setting out arguments accordingly.
The council maintains that the £97,749, which accumulated over a three-year period, was money well spent as the complex matter was settled out of court.
Just who was involved, and what the issue or issues were, remain a mystery.
A council spokesman said: "Unfortunately, the out of court agreement prevents us from giving further details of the legal matters. Discussing these issues would put the council at risk of being sued."
The authority has its own in-house legal team, but uses Dolmans Solicitors in high value and industrial disease cases, and historically for personal injury claims.
According to a council report, the stadium litigation concluded last June "due to the complexity of the issues involved".
The council spokesman said: "There were legal issues involving several parties relating to the Liberty Stadium. The council needed specialist legal advice over a number of years to protect its interests and reduce the risk of future legal action.
"The legal advice costing £97,749 would have been a lot higher had the matter gone to court.
"However, all of the legal matters were resolved out of court and to the satisfaction of all parties involved, saving the council and taxpayers a significant amount of money."
The £27 million stadium was built using public money — and the council holds a one-third share-holding in Swansea Stadium Management Company, which runs the Liberty and made a profit, according to latest accounts.
The council spent £263,000 with the Swansea Stadium Management Company in 2011/12, down from £361,000 the previous year.
The stadium, which Swansea City FC plans to extend, is known to hundreds of millions of sports fans worldwide, thanks to the achievements of the Ospreys and tremendous success of the Swans.
