The High Court has named Mr Justice O'Donovan to hear all the pre-trial applications arising out of the £40 million claim being taken by the Minister for Agriculture, Food and Rural Development, Mr Walsh, against insurance companies and brokers as a result of a fire at the Halal Meats plant in Ballaghadereen, Co Roscommon, in 1992.

The Minister is suing 80 insurance companies and brokers arising from their failure to indem nify him, following the destruction of huge quantities of intervention beef.

The Minister made the application yesterday for the appointment of a single judge to hear the applications on the basis that, because of the number of parties involved, there would be a multiplicity of interlocutory applications.

As the actions arise out of the same set of facts, to a very large extent, both the proceedings and the court time could be efficiently managed by one judge, who could become familiar with the facts of the case, the Minister's legal representatives argued.

The Minister has indicated that when the matter is ready to proceed to trial - sometime next year - the actions should then be heard by one judge, and each case tried individually.

The solicitors acting for the Minister, Matheson Ormsby Prentice, have indicated that all cases are now at an advanced state of readiness. The court case is likely to last a number of weeks and will cover a number of the issues covered by the beef tribunal.