The Irish Haemophilia Society says that if its concerns about the procedures at the public inquiry are not addressed, it could become "another Flood tribunal".
The society has criticised what it describes as the "extreme lack of sensitivity" of comments made by counsel at Thursday's session of the Haemophilia Infection Inquiry. The administrator of the organisation, Ms Rosemary Daly, said that "to date" the society had "no trust" in the tribunal's legal team.
Tomorrow, the chairwoman of the inquiry, Judge Alison Lindsay, will rule on an application by the society to allow people with haemophilia who have been infected with HIV and hepatitis C to testify before other witnesses. It has also asked that its counsel be allowed to bring the society's witnesses through their evidence. The society is seeking to have its costs awarded on an interim basis and wants to be given the power to submit its own documents.
Ms Daly said its members were offended by the argument made by counsel for the Attorney General, the State and the Public Interest that granting costs to the society on an interim basis "would lead to greater expense, greater complication and a slowing down of the inquiry".
Ms Maureen Clark SC said on Thursday that while the members of the society were "worthy of a great deal of public sympathy", they could not be put in a more advantageous position than other parties before the tribunal.
Counsel for the tribunal, Mr John Finlay SC, said it was for the tribunal to decide in what order witnesses should be called and that no group should be given absolute priority.
She "was greatly saddened by the proceedings", she said. "I am sure that counsel for the Attorney General didn't mean some of her remarks or didn't think them through. "We're talking about people who have a potential death sentence hanging over them or widows who are rearing children on their own.
"There was an extreme lack of sensitivity. I would hope it doesn't put our members in a situation where they don't want to partake in this tribunal."
The society wanted an inquiry "that will work and it's proven that Flood doesn't work and this tribunal team are proposing to adopt the same procedures. We're just asking for a mechanism that will get to the end of the story."
Ms Daly said the society's executive would meet after Judge Lindsay delivers her rulings on the issues tomorrow and may ask for a meeting with the Government immediately afterwards.
