Radio presenter Chris Barry was the "number one" presenter on Dublin's "number one" station, FM104, and the station will suffer irreparable loss if he is permitted to continue broadcasting on its main rival, 98FM, the High Court was told yesterday.
The claim was made by Mr Ercus Stewart SC on the opening day of a number of legal actions arising from the alleged termination of an alleged contract of June 11th, 1996 between Chris Barry, whose real name is Ciaran Gaffney, his company, Pavilion Company Ltd, and FM104.
Last month the Supreme Court cleared the way for Mr Gaffney to broadcast on 98FM. The full hearing to stop him going there on a permanent basis - and other related proceedings - opened before Ms Justice Laffoy yesterday.
Mr Gaffney had been broadcasting on FM104 for some years until last December when he ceased broadcasting with the station. FM104 brought proceedings to stop him breaking what it claimed was a contract of June 11th, 1996 due to run until January next.
Last month, FM104 failed to get an interlocutory injunction preventing Mr Gaffney broadcasting on 98FM pending a full trial of the action and the Supreme Court refused an application to continue it further.
Following the Supreme Court decision, 98FM's general manager, Mr Ken Hutton, indicated that arrangements would be made with a view to Mr Barry broadcasting in the following week.
Yesterday, Ms Justice Laffoy began hearing three sets of proceedings.
In the first set, Capital Radio Productions Ltd, trading as FM104, is seeking a number of declarations and orders against Mr Gaffney, of Luttrell Park Close, Castleknock, Dublin, and his company, Pavilion Company Ltd, of the same address.
FM104 wants a declaration that a contract which it claims it made with Mr Gaffney on June 11th, 1996 is valid and subsisting and binding on the defendants and that the purported termination - of December 4th, 1997 - of the contract by the defendants is of no effect.
It also wants an injunction restraining the defendants from providing services as a presenter or chat show host for any night time radio show in the greater Dublin area until January 31st, 1999 and an order compelling the defendants to comply with the terms of the contract of June 11th, 1996.
In the second set of proceedings, Mr Gaffney and his company are seeking to overturn the June 11th, 1996 "agreement" with FM104, a declaration that the agreement is void and/or voidable and damages for breach of contract.
In the final set of proceedings, FM104 is seeking a declaration against 98FM that the June 11th, 1996 contract which it claims to have agreed with Mr Gaffney and Pavilion is valid and an order restraining 98FM from doing anything which procures and/or induces breach of contract or publicising or advertising that Chris Barry will be broadcasting with 98FM. FM104 also seeks damages for procuring a breach of contract.
After preliminary legal submissions yesterday, Ms Justice Laffoy said she would initially deal with the issue of liability before addressing damages.
Opening the case taken by FM104 against Mr Gaffney and his company, Mr Ercus Stewart said his client's main rival was 98FM. Mr Gaffney was the "number one" presenter on the "number one" station's flagship show until last December. He said Mr Gaffney had been with FM104 since 1989. On June 11th, 1996 he and his company had signed a contract which was to continue until January 31st, 1999, under the terms of which he was to be paid £40,000 a year.
He said the defendants had, since December 4th, 1997, failed to honour the terms of the contract while his client had honoured it. In their defence, Mr Gaffney and Pavilion admit they entered into an agreement with FM104 but deny entering into a written contract with the station on June 11th, 1996. If, which is denied, they entered into an agreement on that date, they claim it was part oral and part written.
They say if, which is denied, FM104 entered into an agreement with the defendants, this agreement was validly terminated by the defendants as a result of FM104's own breach of contract. The hearing resumes today.
