Kelly sells site handled by lawyer Byrne

A company owned by Wicklow property developer John Kelly is selling a property in Dublin city centre it acquired in April in a €3.5 million transaction processed by solicitor Thomas Byrne.

Sini Holdings is selling the site on Hill Street in Dublin after securing planning permission for 28 large apartments and 750sq ft of retail space. It is expected to sell for about €4.5 million.

Mr Kelly's company used a loan from EBS building society to buy a protective clothing business called Orrwear, which owned the property. Sini bought Orrwear rather than the property directly to minimise its tax bill on the transaction.

Mr Kelly and Mr Byrne became directors of Orrwear on April 2nd, the day Mr Kelly agreed to buy the shares in Orrwear. Mr Byrne became a director to facilitate the deal but is not a shareholder.

Mr Byrne acted as Mr Kelly's solicitor when contracts were drawn up early in the sale process, but another legal firm completed the deal, according to a source close to the transaction.

EBS secured a judgment of €12.6 million against Mr Byrne on November 7th after he failed to repay several loans.

Mr Kelly's EBS loan for the Orrwear purchase is separate to the loans provided by the society to Mr Byrne.

Mr Byrne's Walkinstown practice was closed by the Law Society last month.

On Monday he was ordered to pay over €8 million to Bank of Scotland (Ireland) and National Irish Bank, bringing to about €40 million the money he has been ordered to repay to various banks.

Mr Kelly, Kilquade, Co Wicklow, swore an affidavit in the case taken by IIB Bank against Mr Byrne saying that a signature purporting to be his on a deed of assurance made between himself and Mr Byrne on a property in Ballsbridge, Dublin, was "not my signature".

He said he had no legal or beneficial interest in the property and he "did not execute any document whatsoever in relation to any purported conveyance or transfer of a legal or beneficial interest in the property to Thomas Byrne or any other party".

Documents concerning Mr Byrne's own dealings with the EBS have been sent to the Garda Bureau of Fraud Investigation after a High Court judge said there were "disturbing matters" in the EBS documents.