Bank can sell Barry’s shares

A COURT ruling has cleared the way for Allied Irish Banks to seek the sale of some 90,000 shares in Barry’s (Cork) as part of its effort to enforce an €8 million judgment order obtained against company director Donagh Barry.

At the Commercial Court yesterday, Mr Justice Peter Kelly confirmed a charging order made over the 90,000 shares, a 9% shareholding, held by Mr Barry in Barry’s (Cork), an unlimited company, of Kinsale Road, Cork.

A copy of the court order will now be placed on the public file of the company and the judge also granted AIB liberty to apply to the court, on notice to Mr Barry, to sell the shares.

The judge had granted an interim charging order last month over the shares and the bank yesterday applied to have that made absolute.

According to court documents, Mr Barry held, within the last 10 years, directorships of Barry’s Cork, Barry’s Tea, Central Plaza Properties and four other companies.

Mr Barry, Cowper Road, Rathmines, Dublin, did not oppose the application which arose after the court last May entered €8m summary judgment orders against him and his brother-in-law, Michael McCarthy, Shrewsbury Downs, Ballinlough, Co Cork, over their guarantees of unpaid loans to a property company.

Neither man advanced any defence to the summary judgment application.

Both had in August 2007 provided personal guarantees, up to a maximum €8m, over loans of some €18m provided by AIB to Central Plaza Properties Ltd with registered offices at Cork Road, Midleton, Co Cork.

The loans were advanced to develop a zoned site in the Mahon district of Cork city. The bank said the proposed development did not proceed because it was not considered financially viable due to deteriorating market conditions in April 2008 when planning permission was secured.

After the company defaulted on interest payments in 2009, the bank demanded repayment in late 2009 but no repayment was made. It then initiated proceedings against the guarantors.