Common sense - Home repossession case

BY any yardstick, the High Court verdict in favour of a Roscommon couple pursued for €1.4m in accrued interest on their £40,000 mortgage is a victory for common sense. If ever a case deserved to be struck out, this was it. And the decision of Ms Justice Isobel Kennedy to so do is sure to win wide acclaim.

The nub of the matter is that since 2001 John and Shelia Nolan have been caught up in a classic example of sub-prime lending. More than most, they know how hard it is to escape the clutches of a complex mortgage web when things go wrong. Only those who have experienced similar scenarios can visualise the threat hanging over the Nolans and the relief they felt yesterday.

Facing repossession proceedings 18 years after the mortgage was first drawn down, the judge described the hold-up in progressing the case against them as “inordinate” and “inexcusable”. Finding they were not to blame for the delay she said the company had misled the court and ruled the lender will have to pay the full costs of the case.