Friday 11 December 2015 08:31, UK
Dave King says he was not surprised to be cleared of contempt of court, claiming an "absolute humiliation" for Mike Ashley at the High Court in London.
Newcastle owner Ashley, through his Sports Direct firm, attempted to have Rangers chairman King jailed for publicly discussing the merchandise contract between the football club and the retailer.
Having heard evidence for more than three hours, Mr Justice Peter Smith ruled he was not guilty of contempt and rejected the claim.
King told Sky Sports News HQ: "I'm absolutely delighted. It's not an unexpected result. It's a case I always thought was very frivolous."
A court injunction currently prohibits King from openly talking about the agreement between Sports Direct and Rangers and any meetings between him and Ashley.
The South African-based businessman had briefly touched on the deal in a TV interview in July.
Smith felt the level of detail King went into then was not harmful enough to warrant the 30 days in prison he could have been punished with.
The 60-year-old has been warned, however, he should not feel completely 'vindicated' and whether he has breached the injunction is a matter which could still come to trial in January.
King was in attendance to see Smith throw out the case, which had cost approximately £400,000.
During proceedings, it was also revealed a £5m loan owed to Ashley by Rangers had been paid back in full on Wednesday.
King added: "It was very pleasing for me to see we had a very, very strong judge who saw this case for exactly what it is.
"It's an absolute humiliation from Mike Ashley's point of view. I think it was disappointing it got this far and to repeat, it's not that surprising the judge dealt with it so quickly.
"This matter should just never ever have got to court. Our relationship hasn't changed - it's still subject to the stresses and strains everyone's aware of."
