Important update
To start with a personal message from Alex’s wife, Barbara.
"Dear Community, Friends and Supporters,
I would like to take this opportunity to express my heartfelt thanks to you all for the extraordinary way you have bravely and boldly stood up for Alex.
Your support has been instrumental to giving him the strength to endure the torture of witnessing his beloved patients suffering as a result of his forced absence.
The pain of not being allowed to help animals who need it as well as their owners, is something Alex struggles to put up with every single day and night... I want all of you to know that your touching words of support, wonderful cards, heartbreaking letters, beautiful pictures, even delicious homemade cakes and little gifts of appreciation had an enormous impact on Alex especially in those first weeks of his struggle. He was so hurt by this whole situation, that despite my deepest love for him, I know it wouldn't have been enough to pull through if it wasn't for YOU all too. This whole Community and devoted Clients from far and wide gave him strength to fight for what's right, which is a demonstration of how special and powerful you all are.
It has been 3 months since he was asked to "not attend the clinic" and it is absolutely heartbreaking for him to be deprived of his identity, of what he loves the most and of what he's best at. What Alex managed to build in the last 12 years with his hard work and dedication, has been destroyed within those 3 months right in front of his eyes.
Despite this horrendous situation, I sincerely believe that there is a silver lining and that good will prevail!
Many of you ask what can be done and how can you help more...
So far, we have been trying to cover legal fees ourselves, however, it is highly likely that the dispute with Medivet will have to be resolved through Court proceedings. This might significantly raise the costs to an estimated 125-150k. Therefore, any help, however big or small would be greatly appreciated. This total cost does not have to be paid straight away, as Court proceedings comprise various stages and could take approximately 12-18 months. All the money raised will go towards legal fees. If things get resolved in any way or the case settles earlier, the surplus will go towards establishing a new practice and a charity chosen by Alex.
All the invoices and account balance will be made public and available for anyone to view to ensure complete transparency.
I know that with our huge following of Facebook group supporters as well as thousands of people who signed the Petitions, the donations won't have to be big to make a significant difference, especially if spread over a few months.
I am of course mindful that many people might be in financial hardship themselves and with the price raise at the clinic as well as no 'price matching' allowed since Alex's absence, it might not be easy to donate much or at all.
I would like you to know that Alex would never want anyone to get into an even bigger financial hardship as a result of donations they make, he also would never want anyone to feel bad if they are not in a position to donate anything.
I would also like to ask you to simply continue trusting in what you know about Alex and how you and your animals experienced him, he's always been an open book to everyone. You all know him, most of you have known him for years, you have all experienced his love and compassion for animals and veterinary medicine...
Alex is longing to be back doing what he loves…..making animals feel better without ripping off their owners...
I can’t express my immense gratitude to everyone enough for what you have done so far… Alex and I will be forever grateful for this.
He sends his love to you all and to all his patients!
With lots of love,
Barbara (Alex's wife)"
As you can tell from Barbara’s heartfelt message, we have been busy in the background. As we all know Alex is in partnership with Medivet in Forest Row and embedded within that agreement are certain confidentialities. This means that Alex cannot share, apart from with his legal team, any details about the situation until such time as the information comes into the public domain.
Alex and his legal team have been trying to resolve the partnership agreement. However, over these last few weeks it has become clear that Alex is in dispute with Medivet and faces the possibility of having to resolve the dispute through the Court’s process. As a result of this dispute Alex is forced to raise funds in order to fund his legal case against Medivet.
This is where we can help. There is a real chance that the legal costs may exceed £150,000, so everything and anything we can do to raise funds will really help towards setting Alex free of Medivet and back to looking after our animals.
Barbara, Alex’s wife, Ian and myself have been clear that fund raising and the use of funds must stand up to scrutiny and as much of the funds raised goes towards the defined purposes. We have now opened a bank account for this purpose, payments can only be made by two of us agreeing to make a payment. We will keep formal accounts of donations and expenses. Donations will be confidential but we will provide information about total donations received and expenses met.
The use of funds will be:
1. Meeting Alex’s legal costs in relation to the dispute with Medivet,
2. Contributing towards the cost of establishing a new practice,
3. Any surplus funds will be donated to animal charities of Alex’s choosing.
These giant corporations know they can bully individuals into submission due to their vast financial resources, knowing that the vulnerable victim has limited funds to see Justice served on these greedy scoundrels. We have a chance to do something about this and the sooner it gets out in the open how they have behaved, the sooner we get Alex back.
If you have any questions please e-mail
friendsofalexllorens@gmail.com
Please help us free Alex from Medivet by making a donation to
BANK: HSBC
Bank Account Name: The Friends of Alex Selles Llorens
Sort Code: 403808
Account No: 51659340