A roundup of today's other business news in brief
Law firm Philip Lee to represent Seán FitzPatrick
Dublin law firm Philip Lee has come on record to represent former Anglo Irish Bank chairman Seán FitzPatrick in his defence of the legal proceedings taken by the State- owned bank to recover loans of €70 million, according to High Court filings.
Anglo is being represented by Arthur Cox in the legal proceedings, which were issued against Mr FitzPatrick earlier this month.
Philip Lee operates offices in Dublin and Brussels and has nine Dublin-based partners and five associates.
The firm’s first mention in the case involving Mr FitzPatrick and Anglo Irish came last week.
Corporate governance code of practice
A new code of practice which will assess Irish organisations’ compliance with corporate governance standards will be published today by the Institute of Directors and the National Standards Authority of Ireland.
The document – SWIFT 3000: 2010 Code of Practice for Corporate Governance Assessment in Ireland – is the first code to award certification to Irish companies which meet the required standard of corporate governance.
All organisations in Ireland, from State bodies to mid-sized and large private companies, will be eligible to apply for the certificate.
€11.5m order against developer adjourned
An application by Bank of Ireland for €11.5 million summary judgment orders against a Co Wicklow property developer arising from unpaid loans has been adjourned to a full hearing.
The summary judgment application against George Wilkin, Roselawn Green, Boghall Road, Bray, Co Wicklow, was listed for hearing at the Commercial Court yesterday but Michael McDowell SC, for Bank of Ireland, told the court that the sides had agreed, following an exchange of affidavits, that the matter should go to a full plenary hearing.
Customer spend on telco services slips
Customers are spending less on telecoms services, a new survey from the Communications Regulator showed yesterday.
However, the survey also revealed that they were spending more time online. Mobile phone penetration, which is currently at 95 per cent, is continuing to rise in the Republic, while fixed line penetration fell marginally to 65 per cent, according to Comreg.
According to the research, the average bi-monthly spend on fixed-line services is just under €80 compared to more than €96 in December 2008.
Spending on mobile phones is also falling, dipping to just over €36 in January 2010 from just over €41 in December 2008.
