Wimbledon expansion planning permission cleared by UK court after challenge

LONDON (Reuters) -Wimbledon's plans to expand the grounds for the world's oldest and most prestigious Grand Slam in tennis were lawfully approved, London's High Court ruled on Monday.

Campaign group Save Wimbledon Park took legal action over planning permission granted to the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club (AELTC), which wants to treble the size of its main site in a 200 million-pound ($269.6-million) project.

Planning permission was approved by the Greater London Authority (GLA) last year, but Save Wimbledon Park says the GLA failed to properly take account of restrictions on redeveloping the land.

Judge Pushpinder Saini rejected Save Wimbledon Park's challenge to the lawfulness of planning permission – but Wimbledon's plans still face another legal hurdle about the status of the land, which will be heard early next year.

(Reporting by Sam Tobin; Editing by Kate Holton)