Report into DCC expected next week

THE REPORT of an inspector appointed to investigate unlawful insider dealing by DCC plc and its former chief executive Jim Flavin, in the €106 million sale of the DCC stake in Fyffes 10 years ago, is to be supplied to all those directly affected by it, the Commercial Court directed yesterday.

It is expected the report will be published in full next week.

The Director of Corporate Enforcement (DCE), who received the report by inspector Bill Shipsey on December 21st, is supporting publication in its “full and unredacted form” from next Monday and has no problem with it being made available to the companies involved before then, Brian O’Moore, counsel for the director, told the court yesterday.

The report relates to the February 2000 €106 million sale of the DCC stake in fruit distributor Fyffes and was carried out in the wake of a 2007 Supreme Court finding of insider dealing, as a result of which DCC has paid Fyffes more than €37 million in damages. The findings could provide the basis for disqualification proceedings against any people involved in the share sales.

Mr Justice Peter Kelly was told yesterday there were 10 printed copies of the report, without appendices, and five copies on memory sticks available for circulation to the parties concerned.

Michael Cush, counsel for DCC and its subsidiaries, SL Investments Ltd and Lotus Green Ltd, asked that the report be made available to those three companies, all members of their boards of directors, Mr Flavin, to all senior executives whose conduct was referred to in the report and their professional advisers.

Mr Justice Kelly directed the report be given to solicitors for DCC to be distributed to those parties, subject to confidentiality restrictions, pending the return of the matter before him next week.

The judge ordered the report be given to Tánaiste and Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment Mary Coughlan after her counsel said she wished to consider whether to apply to make corporate bodies liable for the costs of the inspector’s investigation.

The appointment of the inspector to DCC and subsidiaries SL Investments and Lotus Green was sought by DCE Paul Appleby following the 2007 Supreme Court finding of unlawful insider dealing by DCC and Mr Flavin in the €106 million sale of the DCC stake in Fyffes in early 2000.

In July 2008, Mr Justice Kelly appointed Mr Shipsey as inspector after he found circumstances suggesting unlawfulness in the conduct of DCC’s affairs relating to the 1995 transfer of the DCC stake in Fyffes and/or the sale of that stake.