THE taxman is happy, but the petition to wind-up the firm which owns Swindon Town has been kept alive on behalf of another creditor, St John Law.

In Companies Court at the Royal Courts of Justice this morning, HM Revenue & Customs requested the petition be dismissed with costs after all debts were paid to them.

But in a dramatic turn, a solicitor acting on behalf of Quantuma, St John Law's administrator, stood to request the re-service and re-verification of the petition in pursuit of unpaid legal fees.

As reported in the Adver last year, the now defunct solicitor, which represented Lee Power's Swinton Reds 20 in last year's ownership battle, has records to suggest there are unpaid legal bills from that court victory.

In an effort to recover as many assets as possible, the administrator wants these fees and complained there had been no response from Swindon Town Football Company Ltd since October in respect of these.

Niall McCulloch, representing the football club, said these costs were disputed as the company did not believe it was liable for them.

The registrar agreed to re-serve and re-verify the petition and listed another hearing for Monday, March 9 in the same court, where representations are expected from both sides.

Lee Power declined to comment outside the court.