AC Milan hit out at 'exorbitant punishment'
Milan were one of four clubs from the top Serie A division found guilty of conspiring with referees and linesmen to rig games during the 2004/05 season.
The tribunal threw the six-times European champions out of next season's Champions League and ordered them to start their next Serie A campaign on minus 15 points.
Leandro Cantamessa told the appeal court's panel of five judges that the decision to take 44 points off Milan last season was "without precedent" and that the club could only be held "indirectly responsible" for the actions of a former member of its management, Leonardo Meani.
In intercepted telephone conversations Meani asked the Italian Football Federation (FIGC) official in charge of assigning linesmen for Serie A matches for a specific linesman for a game against Chievo Verona in April 2005.
Meani was employed on a short-term contract and was "a person altogether marginal to the club", argued Cantamessa.
"The further away a person is from the club, the more autonomous his actions become and the less controllable on the part of the club," he said.
Cantamessa's attempt to distance Milan from Meani was repeated by the lawyer representing Milan vice-president Adriano Galliani.
"Galliani never approved Leonardo Meani's actions," said Marco De Luca.
All four clubs found guilty by the sports tribunal have denied wrongdoing and are appealing against what they claim are unjust sentences.
Juventus were stripped of their last two Serie A titles and ordered to start next season in the second tier Serie B on minus 30 points.
Fiorentina and Lazio were also relegated to Serie B, though with smaller points penalties.
The judges will retire to consider their verdicts, which are expected to be delivered today -- the deadline UEFA has set the FIGC to submit its list of teams to compete in next season's Champions League and UEFA Cup competitions.