Quinn loses bid to delay proceedings despite letter

A nephew of bankrupt businessman Seán Quinn has written to the Commercial Court in a bid to stop proceedings against him by IBRC, the former Anglo Irish bank.

Peter Darragh Quinn, in the letter read out in the court yesterday, asked Mr Justice Peter Kelly not to proceed with IBRC’s application to assess damages against him until legal proceedings involving him and his family have concluded.

Mr Quinn has not been involved in the Quinn legal battle since last June when the High Court ruled he, Seán Quinn Sr, and Seán Quinn Jr, were in contempt of court orders restraining stripping of assets. A warrant was issued for the arrest of Peter Quinn to serve a three-month term but that has yet to be executed as he remains in Co Fermanagh.

In a letter delivered to the courts service, he said he has appealed the three-month sentence to the European Court of Human Rights.

Last month IBRC secured judgment orders against Peter Quinn in its action aimed at preventing the stripping of assets from the Quinn family’s international property group (IPG).

The case was before the Commercial Court yesterday to assess the amount of damages against Mr Quinn.

Mr Justice Peter Kelly refused Mr Quinn’s request to the delay the IBRC proceedings, on grounds including that judgment in favour of the bank had already been granted against him. Mr Quinn could not be heard by the court until he had purged his contempt, the judge added.

Mr Justice Kelly said Mr Quinn “seemed to be under the misapprehension that the bank was seeking judgment against him”, whereas judgment had already been granted.

In the letter, Mr Quinn said he “rejected the merits” of IRBC’s claim against him. Due to the committal order against him he said he was unable to instruct lawyers to act on his behalf.

He said his co-defendants were resisting the bank’s application in the main proceedings on similar grounds to him. Any defence upheld by the courts in the co-defendant’s favour would apply to him, he said.

In reply, Shane Murphy SC, for IBRC, said his client rejected the assertions made in Mr Quinn’s letter. Mr Quinn had not entered a defence or an appearance to IBRC’s claim, and judgment had been granted against him, he said, adding that the contempt proceedings were not relevant to the application to assess damages.

The court agreed to adjourn to May 13.