A decision yesterday by a Belfast magistrate not to extradite a man to the Republic because of confusion over the status of District Court clerks could have widespread ramifications, a legal source said last night.
Mr John Clery dismissed an application to extradite a Belfastman on the grounds that the clerk of Dundalk District Court was not a properly appointed person when he signed a backing certificate.
"If this ruling is not upset on appeal it could lead to court challenges to most, if not all, of the extradition cases in recent years, including the most high-profile ones," said the legal source.
The RUC had applied for the extradition of Mr Eamon Coney (29), of Cranbrook Gardens, Ardoyne, on two warrants charging him with having a gun and attempting to hijack a car at Newry Road, Dundalk, on September 24th, 1995.
Opposing the application, Mr Billy McNulty, defending, submitted that the warrants were invalid.
He said that in view of Mr Justice McCracken's ruling last week, the clerk of Dundalk District Court, Mr Gabriel Berkery, was not a properly appointed official when he signed the certificates.
Mr McNulty referred the court to two photostats from reports in The Irish Times. The first gave details of Mr Justice McCracken's judgment that court clerks should have been appointed by the Minister for Justice and not by a civil servant. The second referred to the subsequent decision by the Minister to make an order reappointing the State's 185 District Court clerks.
Mr McNulty told the court: "The warrants signed by District Judge Brennan may in themselves be proper warrants but can no longer be held to be such because the accompanying certificates are not in order."
A barrister representing the RUC said it was not for the court to go behind the certificates.
"This court has a duty to accept that all the formalities were properly attended to and I submit there is no obstacle to the application proceeding," he said.
Mr Clery said: "I think there is sufficient evidence that the gentleman who signed the certificates, perhaps unwittingly, was not a clerk at the time.
"For that reason I am drawn to the conclusion that the matter is not properly before me and I am obliged to make no order."
The RUC's barrister then indicated there might be an appeal by way of a case stated and applied to have Mr Coney remanded in custody.
After an objection by Mr NcNulty, the magistrate ruled that Mr Coney could be released on his own bail of £500.