The High Court has been told that Jefferson Smurfit Group does not expect any opposition from shareholders or creditors to a €3.4 billion takeover deal by Madison Dearborn Partners. Mr Bill Shipsey, SC, counsel for the group, told Mr Justice Michael Peart yesterday that members had voted in favour of reducing share capital by 10 million shares to facilitate the takeover.

He said that, at an extraordinary general meeting on July 29th, 99.6 per cent of shareholders, in person or by proxy, had voted in favour of the Madison Dearborn takeover offer, which could not become effective until sanctioned by the court. The offer had later secured acceptances from shareholders owning in excess of 80 per cent of the company's shares allowing the deal to go unconditional.

Judge Peart fixed August 27th for the hearing of the group's petition for the reduction of the company's capital and directed, since the company had subsidiaries all over the world, that it be advertised in the Financial Times and the Wall Street Journal as well as Irish newspapers.

Mr Shipsey, who appeared with Mr Lyndon MacCann, also successfully applied for a direction dispensing with a Companies Act requirement to produce a list of creditors. He said the company's creditors consisted mainly of special advisers, who were owed €1.284 million. The company had received €5 million as part payment of an inter-company loan and there was more than enough cash in the bank to meet these demands.

Mr Michael O'Riordan, the company secretary, said it was proposed under the terms of the Madison Dearborn offer