Family bid to stop Quinn group assets being sold or moved to Nama

The family of bankrupt businessman Sean Quinn has gone to court to stop multi-million assets in the Quinn group being sold off or moved into Nama by the end of the year.

The Quinns claim they are the rightful owners of the assets and the special liquidator of State-owned Irish Bank Resolution Corporation, formerly Anglo Irish Bank, is not entitled to transfer them to Nama or sell them by Dec 31 as required by a direction of the minister for finance.

IBRC special liquidator Kieran Wallace, is opposing the application before the Commercial Court. He contends the Quinns have established no basis for orders of “astonishing breadth and consequence,” that, he said, would significantly prejudice the bank and the public interest.

He also claimed the Quinns have no claim to the assets taken over by IBRC and their application is pointless in circumstances where the Quinn companies were insolvent when the bank took them over in Apr 2011.

The Quinns dispute Mr Wallace’s claims various banks and bondholders would not have agreed to those loans being restructured and also contended various actions by Ibrc and Mr Wallace damaged the value of their companies and cost them millions.

If the Commercial Court refuses to make an order preventing the assets being sold or moved in to Nama, the Quinns will consider a constitutional challenge to the provisions of the Ibrc Act, their counsel said.

The hearing of the injunctions application opened yesterday and is listed for three days.

Martin Hayden, counsel for the Quinns, said they are concerned, should they ultimately win their action alleging they are not liable for €2.34bn loans allegedly unlawfully made by Anglo to Quinns companies between 2007 and 2008, there will be no money or assets to meet their claim for damages.

In exchanges with counsel, Ms Justice Mary Finlay Geoghegan said it seemed the only assets at issue in the case were shares held by the Quinns in six specific companies.

Mr Hayden said his side had not received information from Mr Wallace as to the precise assets under IBRC’s control and this application was intended to “ring-fence” Quinn companies assets pending the outcome of the family’s main action.