( L - R ) Wavell Hinds, Dr Julian Hunte - File

The West Indies Players' Association WIPA has lost its first court case against the West Indies Cricket Board (WICB) and now fears for the security of all first-class players across the region.

This, as a High Court in Trinidad has discharged an injunction that had prevented the board from terminating a six-year-old Collective Bargaining Agreement and Memorandum of Understanding with WIPA. The CBA/MOU had expired in November 2011.

In court yesterday, High Court judge Ricky Rahim discharged the interim injunction order which had been made on March 1, 2012, dismissed WIPA's claim and WIPA to pay to WICB costs totaling approximately TT$900,000.

WIPA was very concerned at the development.

"WIPA is very concerned that the first-class players across the region are not protected by any Collective Bargaining Agreement," said a short statement from the player's union official yesterday. The termination of the CBA/MOU could mean that the players' only means of redress over any dispute between themselves and the board would be to take strike action.

The dispute came to a head in 2011 when the WICB attempted to terminate the agreements. WIPA argued that the unilateral termination of the agreement would leave the players unprotected. The player's union then successfully sought an injunction to stop the WICB from terminating the CBA/MOU, which meant that the agreement would remain in place. The CBA/MOU expired in November 2011. WIPA took the WICB to court last year to determine whether the agreement should be allowed to remain in place.

no termination clause

According to media reports at the time, "The WICB has argued that although the agreement does not have a termination clause, a termination provision can be implied even though none is specifically stated, and that the agreement negotiated in 2005 was not intended to remain unchanged in perpetuity." The players' union held the view that both parties intentionally left out a unilateral termination clause, and that the WICB could not unilaterally terminate the agreements.

Yesterday's ruling was a blow to WIPA and the union's board of directors that includes WIPA President Wavell Hinds, Nixon McLean, Patterson Thompson and Samuel Badree, must now urgently convene to determine if there will be a challenge to the court ruling. They have 14 days to do so. Hinds left the island yesterday to attend the annual general meeting of the WICB.

The WICB was represented by Christopher Hamel-Smith, SC, Luke Hamel-Smith and Catherine Ramnarine while WIPA's legal team was led by Dave Kissoon.

Prior to yesterday's ruling, WIPA had won 15 consecutive court or arbitration.