Judgments registered against construction firm's owners

JUDGMENTS AGAINST businessmen Liam Moran and Vincent Maguire, the owners of the Walsh Maguire construction company, which is now in liquidation, have been registered against a range of properties around the State.

Land Registry filings show five judgments for a total of €31.2 million have been registered against property owned by Mr Moran, who is a solicitor based in Malahide, Co Dublin.

Ten folios in Co Dublin as well as folios in counties Waterford, Limerick and Cavan, have judgments listed against them.

In the case of Mr Maguire, who has an address in Oldtown, Co Dublin, a judgment against him is registered against an apartment in Portland Place, Ballybough, Dublin.

The judgments are in favour of: Peter McElroy, Roebuck Road, Clonskeagh, Dublin 14, and four others (€2.28 million); William Ennis, Blackrock, Co Dublin (€6.57 million); Mr Ennis (€1.26 million); Shaun Murphy, Clontarf, Dublin 3, with nine others and Jeap Ltd (€9.9 million); and EBS (€10.97 million). The judgment of Mr Murphy and others is also registered against Mr Maguire.

Documents in the Registry of Deeds show further properties in Dublin also have some of these judgments registered against them.

Properties associated with Mr Maguire include an apartment at Charlotte Quay Dock, Ringsend, Dublin; another at the Court, Clontarf; another at St Stephen’s Gate, James Street, Dublin; another at the Laurels, Balbriggan, Co Dublin; two apartments at Beechwood House, Corbawn Lane, Shankill, Dublin; a site at the Courtyard, North Great George’s Street, Dublin; and land at South Strand, Skerries, Dublin.

Judgments against Mr Moran are listed against a range of properties including: 194, 196, 200, 202, 234, 236 and 238 Clonliffe Road, Drumcondra, Dublin; a unit in the Swords Business Park; an apartment at Fitzwilliam Quay, Dublin; 2, 3, and 6 Albert Court, Grand Canal Street, Dublin; a site on Lower Grand Canal Street, as well as numbers 17 and 19 on that street; property at Coopers Lane, Rush, Co Dublin; 11 Malahide Road, Swords; two apartments at the Laurels, Balbriggan, Co Dublin; 3 Killeen Terrace, Malahide; 167 Clontarf Road, Dublin; three apartments at the Courtyard, North Great George’s Street; two properties at the rear of 167 to 173 Clontarf Road; an apartment at Vernon Court, Clontarf and an apartment in Smithfield, Dublin.

Affidavits filed in the registry say the people making the depositions believe the properties listed concerning the two businessmen are owned by them and are capable of being sold by them without the assent of any other person.

All of the judgments were awarded by the High Court during 2009. In January, the Commercial Court awarded a judgment for €4.3 million against the two men arising from a case involving the non-completion of a contract for the sale of a commercial property at Blackhorse House Industrial Estate, Dublin 7.

Court listings indicate cases against the two men from Bank of Scotland (Ireland) and Bank of Ireland, are pending.

When Kieran Wallace of KPMG was appointed to Walsh Maguire in March last year, it had debts of around €20 million.

Walsh Maguire was mentioned at the Mahon tribunal in 2008, when it was said a £30,000 withdrawal from an account being examined by the tribunal, the CODR account, was an “on account” payment to the company for work on St Lukes, the constituency centre of former taoiseach Bertie Ahern.

Mr Moran and Mr Maguire were involved in the buying and selling of property in James Street/Grand Canal Place, Dublin, in March 2002. The property was bought from two companies before being sold on to Oaklee Housing Trust, a charitable organisation. Mr Maguire, Mr Moran, Charles Ellis and Tim Collins bought and sold the property in the course of the transaction.

Mr Collins is a close supporter of Mr Ahern, who gave evidence at the tribunal about the operation of another account, the B/T account. He and Mr Moran made a reported €500,000 profit each from the sale of the site of the Battle of the Boyne to the State in 2000.