A cousin of the Sinn Fein president, Mr Gerry Adams, was refused leave yesterday to appeal to the House of Lords over a decision not to prosecute RUC officers alleged to have beaten him up.
But after the ruling in the Court of Appeal, Belfast, lawyers for Mr David Adams said they intended petitioning law lords directly for the right to have the case heard.
Last month Mr Adams (42), of Bunbeg Park, Belfast, lost an appeal against the dismissal of his application for a judicial review of the DPP's decision not to prosecute.
The case followed an earlier court action which resulted in Mr Justice Kerr awarding him £30,000 compensation for injuries he received during his arrest when police foiled an IRA attempt to murder a senior detective.