A retailer on Dublin’s Moore Street claims she was “unceremoniously turfed out” of her premises after objecting to her rent being more than doubled overnight by her new landlord.
At the High Court yesterday, Mr Justice Michael Peart granted a temporary injunction restraining Parnell Street Project Ltd, Richard Moyles and Alex Lazar, permitting anyone but Stella Esemuede to occupy Unit 3 of the Moore Street Mall pending further order on Monday. The mall is at the corner of Moore Street and Parnell Street and has a number of ethnic retail and food outlets.
The application by lawyers for Ms Esemuede was brought on an ex parte (one side only represented) to Mr Justice Peart, who also gave permission for service of the proceedings at short notice on the defendants.
Counsel for Ms Esemuede said his client had been a tenant since 2009 paying €1,500 a month plus an initial security deposit of €14,000. She was recently notified the landlord’s interest in the property had been transferred to Parnell Street Project Ltd and then received a demand for monthly rent of €4,000, to which she never agreed.
She consulted a solicitor who sent a letter to the the new landlord saying she was contesting the rent increase under landlord and tenancy legislation. That led to an “angry response” with her solicitor’s letter torn up in her presence and the gas and electricity being cut off, leading to damage to food products in the premises, counsel said. “She was unceremoniously turfed out of the premises.”
Mr Justice Peart declined to make an order that she be allowed back in but said he would grant an interim injunction restraining anyone but Ms Esemuede occupying the premises.