The State is contesting a claim for legal costs arising from the beef tribunal that was first submitted 12 years after the inquiry ended.
An Irish company, the identity of which has not been revealed, made its first claim for third-party costs in 2006.
The tribunal ran from 1991 and 1994 when it issued its final report under chairman, the late Mr Justice Liam Hamilton. According to reliable Government sources, the figure claimed runs to over €100,000.
No reason has come to light as to why the company and its lawyers waited 12 years before submitting costs. However, during the process of taxation of costs in 2006, the Department of Finance learned of the claim and objected on the basis that the submission was out of time. The department's objection was based on strong advice from the office of the Attorney General, which argued that the Statue of Limitation applied and the claim should have been made within six years.
The information of the new claim came to light last week when the Taoiseach was answering questions in the Dáil about tribunal costs.
The final cost for all sitting and completed tribunals is expected to easily exceed €1 billion when all costs have been paid.