Three accused of exploiting court

A GROUP OF private investors have claimed that businessman Brendan Murtagh and two others engaged in a “ruthless exploitation” of court procedures with the result of delaying to yesterday the securing of €28.1 million judgment orders against the three over failure to honour agreements related to Polish property investments.

Mr Justice Peter Kelly said the significance of the delay was the Educational Building Society got in first as it obtained judgment for €33 million last Monday against Mr Murtagh, Kingscourt, Co Cavan, Greg Coughlan, Ardbrack, Kinsale, Co Cork, and Brian Madden, Well Road, Douglas, Cork. The three now have judgments of more than €61 million against them.

The judge said there might now be “a scramble” for assets of the defendants and the investors might feel a situation was “engineered” whereby their judgment was entered later. He granted permission to the investors to bring a motion in aid of execution of the €28.1 million judgment, granted against all three on consent.

The accusation of “ruthless exploitation” of the court procedures was made by Brian O’Moore SC, for the investors, who said the conduct of the defendants had delayed his side securing judgment.

Yesterday’s judgment was granted to Loparco SA, a Luxembourg-registered company which was the vehicle through which investments were made in four Polish companies. That investment was to be managed by Howard Holdings plc and it was intended the Polish companies would use the funds to acquire and develop sites in Poland.

Loparco claimed it entered into agreements with Mr Coughlan in April 2007 relating to the Polish companies and that all three defendants entered into separate agreements guaranteeing the performance by Mr Coughlan of his obligations.

After a Polish bank demanded early repayment in August 2009 of loans to three of the four Polish companies, Loparco claimed Mr Coughlan was obliged to complete by November 6th the €27.7 million acquisition of option shares in the four companies. Arising from Mr Coughlan’s failure to acquire the shares and the failure by the other defendants to discharge their obligations under the guarantees provided by them, Loparco claimed €28.1 million was due and owing against all three defendants.