Jackie Lavin’s action against Bill Cullen gets hearing date

Businesswoman Jackie Lavin's High Court action against her partner Bill Cullen and one of his companies over an alleged failure to complete a deal for the sale of Killegy House to her is to be heard in October.

Ms Lavin, of Osberstown House, Naas, Co Kildare, has brought proceedings against Glencullen Properties Ltd and Mr Cullen, also of Osberstown House, Naas.

Mr Cullen is Glencullen Properties Ltd’s sole shareholder and a director of the company.

In 2012, the company's bank, Ulster Bank, appointed accountancy firm Kavanagh Fennell as receivers over the firm's assets, including Killegy House, which is located in Killarney, Co Kerry.

The case was briefly mentioned in the High Court on Thursday before Mr Justice Paul Gilligan, who was informed the matter would take five days to hear.

The judge said that, due to the volume of cases waiting to be heard, the court would not be able to hear a five-day action between now and the end of July, when the legal year ends.

Noting that witnesses in Ms Lavin’s action have to travel to Dublin from abroad, he said he was listing the case for hearing on October 25th next.

In her proceedings, Ms Lavin, who says she is in a committed relationship with Mr Cullen, claims she has been a longtime resident of Killegy House and that it is her home.

She claims Ulster Bank created a charge over Glencullen’s assets, including Killegy House, in 1999.

In 2009, Glencullen sought additional credit facilities from Ulster Bank to allow it continue to trade during the economic downturn.

Ms Lavin claims the bank was unwilling to do this unless €1 million was invested in the company.

Ms Lavin said she agreed to advance Mr Cullen the €1 million so he could pay down Glencullen’s liabilities, following the sale of a property the couple had had in Florida for $7.25 million (about €6.7 million).

She said that, as part of the arrangement, Killegy House would be sold to her.

She said she paid more than €757,000 to Glencullen, but it has failed to complete the sale of the property to her.

She claims she has suffered loss and damage as a result of being deprived of the opportunity to buy the house.

After Glencullen was placed in receivership, it secured an order from the Residential Tenancies Board requiring Ms Lavin to leave Killegy House.

Sale order

In her action, Ms Lavin is seeking an order directing the sale of Killegy House to her.

She is also seeking an order prohibiting the defendants from entering into any contract for sale of the property with any party other than Ms Lavin.

Glencullen Properties Ltd denies the claims and argues that Ms Lavin is not entitled to any of the orders she seeks.

In its defence, the company says it accepts that Ms Lavin agreed to advance Mr Cullen €1 million so he could loan Glencullen funds to reduce its liabilities.

However, the company denies the monies were advanced as part of an agreement to sell Killegy to Ms Lavin.

Glencullen says it never agreed to sell her the premises for any sum of money, nor is there any contract of sale between the two parties.

It also says that at no time prior to May 2013 did Ms Lavin mention any agreement involving her buying the property from Glencullen.

The company also says Ms Lavin has failed to comply with the order it obtained requiring her to leave Killegy and it has brought enforcement proceedings in relation to the matter before the Circuit Court.

Mr Cullen has not delivered a defence to the action.