Lawlor denies using foreign lawyers to avoid Mahon

Former Fianna Fáil TD, Mr Liam Lawlor, has denied an accusation he uses foreign solicitors firms in his business dealings to prevent the Mahon tribunal getting access to his files.

The tribunal is currently seeking a number of documents which Mr Lawlor claims are held by various solicitors in London, Prague, Jersey and Gibraltar.

Mr Des O'Neill SC, for the tribunal, accused Mr Lawlor of deliberately creating a situation whereby all details of his property dealings are held by offshore lawyers "so you can put your hand on your heart and say 'I have never seen the papers'".

Mr Liam Lawlor

"That is wholly incorrect," the former TD retorted sharply. "There is not a shred of paper in any of these practices that I do not want the tribunal to see."

He has insisted he could not comply with orders of discovery as he could not afford the fees demanded by his lawyers. The tribunal chairman, Mr Justice Alan Mahon, dismissed this excuse as a "red herring" yesterday after it was established Mr Lawlor had a beneficial interest in a construction company that had the potential to earn him at least €2.5 million.

Should Mr Lawlor fail to satisfy the tribunal's demands for discovery, he faces returning to the High Court and possible imprisonment. He was jailed three times in the past two years for a total of six weeks for not co-operating with the tribunal.

However, this morning Mr Lawlor said he had convinced his solicitors to "park the fees issue" on a promise he would resolve it later. "The priority is to deal with the documentation." He told the tribunal he hoped to have all relevant files within a matter of weeks.

Files detailing the account controlled by Haynes & Trias solicitors in Gibraltar, which contained at least £690,000 of Mr Lawlor's money, are currently "en route" to Dublin, he added.

The tribunal is also seeking documents Mr Lawlor says are held by Isodore Goldman, a London solicitors firm. He said they had demanded £10,000 sterling to produce the files. He was asked why he did not get on a plane to fly over to England and pick them up, now that the fees impediment had been removed. He said he had considered this, but was concerned that the current disruption at Heathrow could leave him stranded in London and prevent him from giving his evidence at the tribunal.

The tribunal also heard that one of Mr Lawlor's lawyers, Mr Anthony Seddon, last night cancelled his scheduled appearance to give evidence, despite the fact that the tribunal had paid for his flights from London and agreed to foot the bill for his £260 per hour fees.

Mr Lawlor was asked by Mr Justice Mahon why he did not "corner" Mr Seddon and insist he give evidence to support him as he was "in serious trouble".