A man who was appointed chief executive of Unidare plc in 1994 yesterday settled his High Court action against the company. Mr Paul Duggan took proceedings after he was told last November his employment would cease from later this year, due to redundancy.

Mr Duggan (44), whose salary is €247,200 plus benefits, said at the opening of the case on Tuesday that he had also been told in November that he would remain an employee for the next 12 months and would continue to be paid but would not be required to go into the office.

When the case was due to resume yesterday, lawyers asked Mr Justice Kelly for a short adjournment. Following discussions between the sides outside court, Mr Mark Connaughton SC, for Mr Duggan, told the judge the case had been settled and the proceedings could be struck out.

The judge said he was glad the parties had been able to reach a settlement. He struck out the proceedings by consent with no order as to costs.

Mr Duggan, of Stillorgan, Dublin, had told the court on Tuesday that, when told last November that his employment would cease, he did not think he had had a fair hearing or that the compensation or notice period given was reasonable.

He believed the decision in relation to him had been made prior to a meeting of November 15th, 2002.

During cross-examination by Mr Paul Gardiner SC, for the company, Mr Duggan said he was of the view that a fair agreement would be for more than one year's salary.

Unidare plc, in its defence, pleaded that it was determined in November that it was unnecessary for the company to have a single person on a very high salary in the role of chief executive.

It admitted that certain functions of the chief executive would be carried out in future by the chairman acting in an executive capacity and the chairman of the US subsidiary acting as executive chairman.