McCullum drops plans of legal action after Parker apology

Brendon McCullum will not take legal action against former New Zealand captain John Parker, following an apology from Parker for his references to McCullum in connection with the Ross Talyor controversy. McCullum's laywers were expected to file proceedings in the High Court in Hamilton this week over the document titled "The Taylor Affair", which they claim was written by Parker.

When he made public his intention to seek legal redress against Parker, McCullum had said he was not seeking monetary damages but wanted Parker's "acknowledgment that the claims he makes are completely false".

Now, through McCullum's legal team, Parker released a statement saying he did not mean to discredit McCullum. "John Parker's focus in preparing the document was on addressing shortcomings in governance at New Zealand Cricket," the statement said. "However in the document John Parker stated that Brendon McCullum knew of the coach Mike Hesson's movements all along, according to certain players. John Parker did not intend this to mean that Brendon McCullum was involved in the decision to replace Ross Taylor as captain. John Parker did not intend to discredit Brendon McCullum and sincerely apologises to him for any harm to his reputation which may have been caused. Both John Parker and Brendon McCullum have examined and resolved their differences successfully, and no legal proceedings by either party will occur."

Parker, in his document, had been critical of Taylor's removal as captain in controversial manner, as well as the wider governance of New Zealand Cricket.

Following McCullum's declaration that he was seeking legal action last week, coach Hesson too had issued a statement saying was seeking his lawyer's advice on the matter.