THE COMMERCIAL Court will rule tomorrow whether the Irish Bank Resolution Corporation, formerly Anglo Irish Bank, is entitled to summary judgment for more than €2 billion against businessman Seán Quinn, who earlier this month filed for bankruptcy in Northern Ireland.
The North’s official receiver in bankruptcy indicated yesterday that he had “concerns” about the accuracy of Mr Quinn’s claims that he had no creditors other than IBRC. He asked Mr Justice Peter Kelly to adjourn the bank’s summary judgment proceedings pending the mentioning on Thursday before the Northern Ireland courts of IBRC’s application to annul the bankruptcy.
Paul Gallagher SC, for IBRC, strongly opposed any adjournment and said there was no defence to its claim for summary judgment. He said the granting of that judgment would have no impact on matters in Northern Ireland.
The bank contends the bankruptcy is contrived and its application to annul it will be mentioned before the High Court in Belfast on Thursday when it is expected that directions for a hearing, unlikely to occur before next year, will be made and the matter will be again adjourned.
In those circumstances, Mr Gallagher told Mr Justice Kelly the bank believed the Commercial Court should proceed to grant summary judgment.
After hearing from Mr Gallagher and from Bernard Dunleavy, for the official receiver, the judge reserved to tomorrow his decision whether to grant summary judgment or adjourn the matter.
The bank’s summary judgment proceedings were initiated just nine days before Mr Quinn filed for bankruptcy in Belfast. IBRC contends it has information concerning Mr Quinn’s centre of main interests which was not before the Northern courts and which indicated the bankruptcy was contrived as the North’s bankruptcy regime is more lenient than here.
Mr Quinn had alleged his centre of main interests is in Northern Ireland because he has companies registered at Derrylin, Co Fermanagh, and is domiciled for taxation there.
In its summary judgment proceedings against Mr Quinn, the bank is seeking repayment of some €2 billion arising mainly from the businessman’s guarantees of loans to companies in the Quinn group. The bank is also claiming €3 million judgment orders against Mr Quinn and his wife Patricia arising from personal borrowings.
Mr Gallagher yesterday said the bank was strongly resisting the receiver’s application to adjourn the summary judgment matter.
Summary proceedings had already been adjourned on November 14th until yesterday to allow the receiver to decide what position he wished to adopt but the receiver had indicated no position and instead sought an adjournment.
It was the bank’s case Mr Quinn had no defence to summary judgment given the terms of the guarantees and obligations he had entered into, Mr Gallagher said.
