McNamara resigns from boards of more than 60 companies

PROPERTY DEVELOPER Bernard McNamara is being pursued by the Collector General and has resigned from his formerly vast property empire.

Mr McNamara, who said last year that he was “broke” and that his companies owed approximately €1.5 billion, resigned from the boards of more than 60 companies in January.

The highly unusual move came just three weeks before the Collector General Gerard Harrahill, who collects taxes for the Revenue Commissioners, initiated proceedings against him in the High Court.

Mr McNamara’s companies borrowed hundreds of millions of euro at the height of the boom. As well as property development ventures Mr McNamara also invested in hotels. He borrowed heavily from Anglo Irish Bank, Bank of Scotland (Ireland) and other banks.

Many of the companies have huge property loans that have been transferred to the National Asset Management Agency (Nama). Last year the agency appointed a receiver to a number of the developer’s businesses.

A spokesman who normally acts for Mr McNamara said he no longer acts on his behalf. Mr McNamara did not return a call to his phone. A spokesman for Nama was not available.

The case against Mr McNamara by the Collector General was filed on January 27th. On January 4th Mr McNamara wrote from his home on Ailesbury Road, Dublin, to more than 60 companies, including one of his main holding companies, Adenway, informing them he was resigning with immediate effect.

He requested the companies submit a standard form to the Companies Office informing it of his resignations.

The companies he has resigned from include include Donatex, which Mr McNamara used when investing in the disastrous Irish Glass Bottle site project in the Dublin Docklands.

Donatex and Mr McNamara are suing the Dublin Docklands Development Authority, which was a partner to the €412 million purchase of the site in 2006. Mr McNamara and his company are seeking tens of millions of euro in damages.

On Tuesday, the High Court was told that Donatex now had no directors and that this raised issues about its ability to continue with the case.

Martin Hayden SC, for Mr McNamara, told the court he had no valid instructions about the position relating to Donatex and that Mr McNamara was out of the country.

When Mr McNamara resigned from Adenway in January, no directors were left on the board. The unlimited holding company owns shares in a wide range of subsidiaries. Director Patrick Fox resigned on November 10th, 2010, the same day as company secretary Catherine Foy.

Mr McNamara has also resigned as a director of Radora Developments, the company behind the Elm Park development in south Dublin.

A receiver, Declan Taite, was appointed to the company by Nama in November. Mr McNamara’s partners in the venture, Jerry O’Reilly and David Courtney, remain on the board.