Key cases in brief

Supreme Court has jurisdiction to hear application by solicitors for a charge on litigation costs awarded to client company Lett & Company v. Wexford Borough Council 2015 IESC 24 (Supreme Court, Dunne J (majority decision), McKechnie J (dissenting), March 10th, 2015) Supreme Court rules that it has jurisdiction to determine an application by a firm of solicitors to a charge upon the costs awarded in litigation, where a company it represented was awarded €650,000 damages by the Supreme Court, on the grounds that legislation empowers the court which made the order by which property was recovered or preserved to charge that property.

– James Cross BL

Apportionment of blame between lessor and lessee for underground leakage at petrol station was just and equitable McMullan Brothers Ltd v. McDonagh (Supreme Court, Charleton J, March 5th, 2015) Supreme Court dismisses appeal from High Court, and affirms decision to apportion liability for an underground leakage at a petrol station at 60:40 as between the lessor and lessee, on grounds that it was just and equitable having regard to the degrees of fault between the parties.

– Shane Kiely BL

District Court had no jurisdiction to order release of information grounding search warrant Leneghan v. Brennan 2015 IEHC 143 (High Court, Kearns P, March 6th, 2015) High Court refuses judicial review of decision not to release a copy of the information upon which a search warrant had issued, on grounds that the District Court had no jurisdiction to make such an order as the issuing of search warrants was an administrative as opposed to a judicial function.

– Ciaran Joyce BL

Fine in lieu of imprisonment for judgment debtor found to be in breach of undertaking to court Harrahill v. Kane 2015 IEHC 64 (High Court, Ryan J, 30 January 2015) High Court imposes a fine of €25,000 on a judgment debtor, in lieu of a reactivation of a six-month suspended prison sentence, for a breach of undertakings given to the court in 2009 following a finding of contempt in relation to the continued use by the respondent and his wife of a car dealership business premises the subject of earlier and now protracted proceedings.

– Ian Fitzharris BL

Judge not objectively biased due to former employment with a bank not a party to proceedings O'Shea v. Butler 2015 IECA 48 (Court of Appeal, Kelly J, March 9th, 2015) Court of Appeal dismisses appeal from decision of High Court judge not to recuse himself from a case due to his former employment with a banking organisation that was not a party to the action, but whose former chief executive had a personal business relationship with the plaintiff, finding that the circumstances came nowhere near satisfying the criteria which would have to be met for objective bias to be made out.

– Ciaran Joyce BL

Wife who co-signed loan agreement for purchase of property had no bona fide defence to bank's claim for judgment AIB Mortgage Bank v. Tracey 2015 IECA 49 (Court of Appeal, Peart J, March 13th 2015) Court of Appeal dismisses appeal from High Court and affirms order of summary judgment in the sum of €3,364,961.00 entered against woman who claimed she signed a loan agreement, together with her husband, for the purchase of a property without independent legal advice, finding that she had not established on affidavit a reasonable probability that she had a real or bona fide defence to the bank's claim.

– Ciaran Joyce BL

Confession given to gardaí in the back of a car was validly admitted into evidence in murder trial DPP v. Buck 2014 IECCA 45 (Court of Criminal Appeal, McKechnie J, November 27th, 2014) Court of Criminal Appeal dismisses appeal of murder and arson convictions, finding that: 1) the court should not interfere with the exercise by the trial judge of his discretion to admit a confession given in the back of a car which had been reduced to writing at the earliest possible opportunity thereafter; 2) Garda presence during a search on premises was unlawful but the trial judge retained a discretion to admit evidence which was the fruit of an illegal search; 3) the trial judge's direction to the jury on the question of corroboration relative to this alleged confession had been adequate; and 4) the trial judge was correct to refuse to discharge the jury despite extensive media publicity of appellant's brother's attempted escape from prison.

– Ciaran Joyce BL

Cases against third party oncologist struck out as notices were not served "as soon as reasonably possible" Hennessy v Griffin 2015 IEHC 150 (High Court, Kearns P, March 13th, 2015) High Court, in the context of medical negligence proceedings, strikes out two sets of proceedings instituted by two defendants – former general practitioners to the plaintiff – against a proposed third party oncologist, as: a) the appropriate third party notices were not served by the defendants within the time limit set down pursuant to the rules of the court; b) the third party has suffered prejudice in regard to the time elapsed since the plaintiff's medical problems were diagnosed; and c) the defendants left it far too late to obtain appropriate expert medical evidence grounding their proposed claims.

– Ian Fitzharris BL

The full text of each judgment can be found on courts.ie. These reports are provided by Stare Decisis Hibernia: staredecisishibernia.com