Lord of the Dance star Michael Flatley is embroiled in another legal row with his former solicitor, this time over money lodged in court in the wake of the battle for his Cork mansion, Castleyhyde.
At issue is money lodged in the High Court, €200,000 of which the solicitor says he is entitled to, out of a sum of €1.4 million taken into court.
In court documents, solicitor Maxwell Mooney claimed the entertainer was allegedly trying to “grab” money lodged in court.
Mooney is already involved in another legal battle with Flatley, who is seeking to compel Mooney’s solicitors firm, based in Maynooth, Co Kildare, to hand over files relating to proceedings about and linked to the Flatley Castlehyde mansion in Fermoy, Co Cork.
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That case, where there are allegations on both sides about legal fees and an alleged hold on files, has gone to mediation.
The latest row relates to €1.4 million lodged in court by Flatley until a disputed costs bill relating to the Castlehyde proceedings was resolved. This related to legal and receivers costs and disputed penalty interest. Agreement was reached of all costs and eventually in relation to disputed penalty interest at €108,000 instead of the €308,000 initially sought.
Mooney, in an affidavit before the court, said that he has no confidence in “Mr Flatley’s ability or willingness” to pay his firm’s legal fees.
Counsel for the Mooney side, Ronnie Hudson, said Mooney who was on record for Flatley’s Blackbird Film Productions Ltd until April this year, has outlined in an affidavit how his firm experienced hardship arising from the alleged non-payment of fees by the Flatley side.
[ Michael Flatley: The deal that let the dancer keep his Castlehyde mansionOpens in new window ]
In that affidavit, Mooney said his firm had worked for a number of years on proceedings in which Flatley is involved, and claimed Flatley is allegedly indebted to his firm for three years of work carried out on his behalf.
At the High Court on Tuesday, Judge Mark Sanfey, who gave permission to the solicitor’s side to make an application that the €200,00 be paid over to him, commented that he had “some despair” over how the proceedings relating to the Flatley case have “gone on and on” and taken up so much court time.
The judge said he did not think that an application relating to the €200,000 was a frivolous or vexatious application.
The judge approved the payout of rest of the money lodged in court which were in relation to fees to the Novellus side, except for the disputed €200,000.
The original legal battle related to a loan made to Flatley’s Blackbird Film Productions Ltd by Novellus Finance Ltd, with registered offices at St Stephen’s Green, Dublin in 2023, with repayments of €67,000 per month over two years. Novellus claimed there had been default on repayment, which Flatley denied.
Flatley provided a guarantee for the loan on the strength of the value of his Castlehyde mansion. As a result of the alleged default, Novellus appointed a receiver over the property.
An interim injunction was granted to the Flatley side to prevent the receiver from taking further measures in relation to Castlehyde. Finally, €6.9 million was paid over and €1.45 million lodged in court which included €308,000 in penalty interest.
Blackbird redeemed its loan from Novellus in March 2025 and Blackbird and Flatley withdrew their claims against Novellus.
The Mooney application will come back before the court later this week.
