A Member of the Association of Secondary Teachers of Ireland's standing committee got leave from the High Court yesterday to bring proceedings next week to restrain the union from excluding him from committee meetings.
Mr Justice McCracken granted Mr Paul Gardiner SC, for Mr Bernard Lynch, liberty to abridge the time for service of a notice of motion for next Wednesday in which Mr Lynch is seeking various orders against the ASTI, including an order restraining it from excluding him from meetings of the standing committee and restraining any investigation, under ASTI rules, into his conduct. He will also apply for an order restraining ASTI from circulating damaging information about him.
Mr Gardiner said the application came against the background of the teachers' pay dispute and of "heated differences" within ASTI which had been worsening since last May. His client was a member of both the ASTI central executive committee and standing committee and it was being alleged he was in breach of the body's rules.
At a meeting of the standing committee on September 19th, it was alleged Mr Lynch had engaged in unbecoming conduct and he was asked to desist. Mr Gardiner said the rules of the standing committee provided that a member who disrupted another might be expelled from the room. Mr Lynch had left the room but, since then, he had been excluded from all standing committee meetings.
Mr Gardiner said the next standing committee meeting was on November 3rd and there was urgency about having his application for various orders against ASTI heard.
Mr Justice McCracken accepted the matter was urgent and granted liberty to Mr Gardiner for short service of a notice of motion on ASTI returnable for Wednesday next.