The Criminal Assets Bureau has filed tax claims of £3.12 million plus interest against a Cork couple, the High Court was told yesterday. Mr Justice Shanley fixed July 21st for hearing the case brought by Mr Patrick Anthony McSweeney and Ms Pauline McSweeney of Fairwinds, Waterfall Road, Bishops town, against the CAB claims.
Yesterday Mr Richard Nesbitt SC, for CAB, read an affidavit from a CAB solicitor, who said the total value of the McSweeneys' assets in this State were substantially less than the CAB claim.
The solicitor said the High Court made an order in 1996, freezing about £300,000 in an account held by the McSweeneys. The court then made a temporary order freezing all Mr McSweeney's assets in the State.
Counsel for Mr McSweeney, Mr John McCoy, applied for an adjournment of his clients' proceedings due to be heard next Tuesday. Mr Nesbitt opposed this, claiming there had been a number of adjournments at Mr McSweeney's request.
Mr Justice Shanley said the basis of the adjournment application was that Mr McCoy had only recently been brought into the case; that fees of prior counsel in the case had not been discharged; that fees due to Mr McSweeney's accountant had not been paid and papers in the accountant's possession would not be released to Mr McSweeney until the fees were paid. There was also a request by Mrs McSweeney that she wanted to be separately represented.
Mr Justice Shanley said there had been five adjournments, all at Mr McSweeney's behest.
He said he would grant one further adjournment. He agreed to vary a previous court order freezing monies in accounts held by the McSweeneys to allow previous counsel appearing for the Mc Sweeneys to be paid fees of almost £7,000; about £6,000 to Mr McSweeney's accountant and £6,785 to his solicitor.