Courts

Landlord Marc Godart must cover legal bill of former tenants in ‘dragged out’ case

Judge Quirke ruled former tenants were entitled to legal costs of just over €3,900 plus VAT after their ‘unlawful eviction’ from a rented property in Dublin 1

Landlord Marc Godart: Domestic and EU-wide enforcement proceedings have been before the court on five occasions since April and he 'did not pay until it was dragged out of him'.
Tom Tuite
Tue Jul 30 2024 - 21:11

Landlord Marc Godart will have to cover a legal bill of some €4,000 after he “dragged out” the payment of compensation to two former Dublin tenants for 19 months, a judge has ruled.

Dublin District Court earlier his month heard the businessman had to be brought “kicking and screaming” to court to pay €13,563 to Diana Jere and Andre Buchanan, who the Residential Tenancies Board (RTB) had in December 2022 ruled were entitled to compensation.

However, they had to take enforcement proceedings before Judge Marie Quirke as the payment remained outstanding until July 18th last, the end of a court-imposed deadline.

When the matter returned to court on Tuesday, Liam Bell, for Ms Jere and Mr Buchanan, said the domestic and EU-wide enforcement proceedings had been before the court on five occasions since April and Mr Godart “did not pay until it was dragged out of him”.

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Finalising the case, Judge Quirke further ruled that the former tenants were also entitled to legal costs of just over €3,900 plus VAT.

In February of last year, the court directed Mr Godart to comply with the RTB ruling that Ms Jere and Mr Buchanan were entitled to the damages after their “unlawful eviction” from a rented property on Emmet Street, Dublin 1.

The two ex-tenants had successfully applied to Judge Quirke for a European Enforcement Order against Mr Godart of rue de Hesperange L-5830, Alzingen, Luxembourg. It is a method of enforcing foreign judgments within the European Union without the need for intermediate proceedings, and it applies only to uncontested claims.

Last month, Ms Lizet Peña-Herrera received compensation from Green Label Short Lets, a property company directed by Mr Godart. The Bolivian psychologist won an order in the District Court for payment of an RTB award, adjudicated in December 2022. The RTB had ordered Green Label Short Lets to pay €15,433 to her because of her illegal eviction from a house on Vintage Court, Cork Street, Dublin 8. However, the award went unpaid until she took a case in the High Court.