A consortium suing over the awarding of the country's second mobile phone licence on grounds including bribery and corruption should not be allowed to amend its original statement of claim because it would be a "recipe for chaos", a lawyer for businessman Denis O'Brien has argued in the High Court.

A High Court judge will decide if a company that lost out on a mobile phone licence in 1996 can sue Denis O'Brien, Michael Lowry and the Irish State using money from a British litigation funder.

A UK litigation funding company is prepared to back a damages action being brought by one of the unsuccessful bidders for Ireland’s second mobile-phone licence, the High Court has heard.