The Garda warns of traffic restrictions around the Point Theatre, Dublin, from 6 p.m. to midnight on Friday during the rehearsals for the Eurovision Song Contest and from 10 a.m. to midnight on Saturday.
A company which markets a footwear dryer was yesterday restrained by the High Court from passing off any products as those of a leading Irish sports company.
Mr Justice Barron ordered O'Neills Footwear Dryer Ltd, Drumard, Summerhill, Co Meath, to remove all stocks of "O'Neills Footwear Dryer" or "O'Neills Shoe Dryer" from retailing outlets throughout the State.
He allowed a stay of one week on the order to enable those holding the products to be notified by the company.
The action was taken by O'Neills Irish International Sports Company and Charles O'Neill Company which manufacture and sell sports goods under the name O'Neills.
They claimed they had acquired a reputation in the name O'Neills and the defendant was deliberately trading on that reputation.
Mr Justice Barron said, in his view, it was no accident O'Neills Footwear Dryer Ltd was marketing the product in the way in which it did. It clearly expected that more sales would be obtained by using the word O'Neills and was deliberately trading upon the reputation of the plaintiffs.
O'Neills Footwear Dryer Ltd was formed in March 1995 by Mr John O'Neill, the company's managing director. Mr O'Neill, a qualified mechanic, now specialises in automobile electrics. In 1994 he had obtained a patent for an electrically operated shoe dryer.
Mr O'Neill sought to interestsports manufacturers, including the plaintiffs, in his invention but without any success. One manufacturer suggested it might he interested if he could establish sales in the product. Not being able financially to manufacture the product for commercial purposes, he imported a similar product from the Far East for the purpose of establishing sales figures.
Before putting the product on sale his company put labels on each box. These indicated that the product was "O'Neill's Footwear Dryer" and referred to Celbridge, Co Kildare, Ireland. The box also contained the words "Made in China".
Mr Justice Barron said the attitude of Mr John O'Neill was that the action was uncalled for and there was no advantage in having the word O'Neills on the product. The judge said he could not accept this.
He said Mr John O'Neill was wrong in believing that since his name was O'Neill he could form a company with O'Neill in its name and market his product under that name.
The judge added that while a person might use his own name in the course of trade and could not he faulted on that ground alone, that did not entitle him to use his own name in such a way as was calculated to lead others to believe his goods were those of another.