The High Court has ruled in favour of the Minister for Finance in an unsuccessful challenge to the promissory notes issued to Anglo Irish Bank and the Educational Building Society. The court made an interesting costs award in this case, which is relevant to other public interest law cases. The challenge was brought by United Left Alliance TD Joan Collins. At the core of Ms Collins case was the constitutionality of the legislation which allowed the issuing of the promissory notes to the financial institutions amounting to €31 billion. All three sitting justices of the High Court agreed the issue raised by Ms Collins had a public interest dimension.
Although finding in favour of the Minister for Finance, the court departed from the general rule that costs go to the winning party. The Court awarded Ms Collins 75% of her costs on the basis of “the importance of the novel question of law raised; the weighty issues in the litigation; the importance to the State and its citizens that the constitutionality of the ‘important and novel’ executive and legislative decisions with far reaching consequences be judicially determined”.
Click here to read a summary of the Court’s decision in the Irish Times.
In awarding Ms Collins 75% costs, the court found her decision to appeal the High Court decision to the Supreme Court was “an entirely neutral factor” in its decision to award costs. Prior to the award of costs the State said it would not pursue costs if Ms Collins did not exercise here right of appeal to the Supreme Court.
Click here to read an article on the RTE website regarding the award of costs in Ms Collins’ case.