Quinn loses bid to strike out Tribune defence

QUINN Insurance Group has lost a High Court bid to strike out parts of the Sunday Tribune’s defence in forthcoming libel proceedings over articles alleging it recruited gardaí to approach solicitors to offer them bonuses on their fees to recommend reduced settlements to clients in cases against Quinn Direct.

Ms Justice Elizabeth Dunne yesterday ruled the defendants had provided adequate details of its plea of justification for the article and also sufficiently set out the nature of the public interest being relied upon to justify the article.

The judge was ruling on a preliminary application in proceedings by Quinn Insurance Ltd (QIL), Quinn Group Ltd (QGL), group founder Sean Quinn and Kevin Lunney, a senior executive with QGL and former senior executive with Tribune Newspapers, over articles published in the Sunday Tribune on April 1 and April 8, 2007.