IBRC gets €16.2m judgment order against Breifne O’Brien

Irish Bank Resolution Corporation has secured summary judgment for €16.2 million against jailed businessman Breifne O'Brien. The application for judgment in a similar amount against the businessman's father Leo O'Brien was adjourned to later next month.

President of the High Court Mr Justice Nicholas Kearns ruled that Breifne O'Brien, who was escorted to court by prison officers for the purpose of personally defending the proceedings, had raised no arguable defence to the claim.

O’Brien is serving a seven-year prison sentence for running a Ponzi scheme that cost his victims millions of euro. He submitted he had an arguable defence and the court should direct a plenary hearing of the bank’s claim.

IBRC, represented by Joe Jeffers, sought summary judgment orders for €16.2 million against Breifne O'Brien, Kilmore, Monkstown Grove, Co Dublin, but now in Mountjoy Prison, and his father Leo O'Brien, over alleged failure to repay loans advanced by Irish Nationwide Building Society in 2002, 2004 and 2006. (IBRC later took over the INBS loans.)

Mr Jeffersl said the money was used to buy investment properties in locations including Cork and Monkstown, Co Dublin. Following a default on repayments, a demand was then made by IBRC for the amounts due on the loans.

The demand had not been satisfied and IBRC was entitled to summary judgment as O’Brien had not made any arguable defence, Mr Jeffers said.

O’Brien argued that he had not had adequate time to prepare for the case having only discovered a few days ago the application for summary judgment was due before the court. He also said he had a defence on the ground that a freezing order made against him by the High Court in 2009 had affected his ability to service the loans. Another ground for defence was a claim that the loans in question were provided as a result of reckless lending and undue influence by INBS.

In his judgment, Mr Justice Kearns said he was satisfied O’Brien had not made out an arguable defence and several of his grounds involved merely “bald assertions”. He did not accept as valid arguments about lack of access to files and documents and noted the proceedings had been in place for some time. Rejecting the grounds based on the 2009 freezing orders preventing him reducing his assets below a value of €14.5 million, the judge said the purpose of those orders was designed to prevent assets being removed from this jurisdiction.

The freezing order did not prevent O’Brien from fulfilling his obligations, including making repayments on the loans, he said. Last October, O’Brien was jailed for seven years after he pleaded guilty to 14 sample counts of deception and theft involving around €8.5 million between 2003 and 2008.