A town's 40 or so publicans who closed their doors for a Traveller's funeral face threat of blanket legal action.
Takeaways which shut down have also been warned by a brother of the deceased, a Traveller in his 30s, that they may be sued as a result of their actions.
Mr Tom McDonagh, who lives at the Halting Site, Castlebar, Co Mayo, issued the warning last night.
Mr McDonagh, an elder brother of Mr Francis McDonagh who died last week, said family members had to go to Westport, 11 miles away, following the funeral when there was a blanket closure of premises in Castlebar.
Mr McDonagh said his family was very disappointed at the decision taken in Castlebar to close not only pubs but also some food outlets.
His brother had been known around Castlebar for the past 30 years, he said, and they would have liked the pubs in the town to remain open following his funeral.
As a result the family had to go to Westport, where there were no problems.
He said: "It was bad enough that the pubs closed, but chippers in the town also closed their doors.
"This caused hardship as many of those who attended the funeral had travelled from England and from around the country and were unable to get something to eat."
The situation, he added, was similar in Ballyhaunis at the recent funeral of his uncle.
Mr McDonagh, who some years ago won €105,400 (£83,000) in the Lotto, confirmed that legal advice would be sought in relation to the closure of premises.
Vintners' leaders have reacted with dismay to Mr McDonagh's threat, pointing out that it comes at a time when controversial equality legislation is shaping up to become an election issue in Mayo, where publicans have been hit with several discrimination claims by Travellers.
Mr Paul O'Grady, former president of the Vintners' Federation of Ireland (VFI), pointed out yesterday that the federation had strongly petitioned the Minister for Justice in relation to the Equal Status Act.
"It is getting to a stage where there will be a walkout by staff and customers," Mr O'Grady said. "The legislation is well on the way to killing the pub trade."