Quinn Finance settles case against McPartland

Former Seán Quinn company had wanted to recover €6.1m from Quinn son-in-law

Niall McPartland (left) and his father-in-law, Seán Quinn. Quinn Finance had claimed the €6.1m payments in 2008 payments were to meet margin calls on contracts for difference  investments in shares in Anglo Irish Bank. Photograph: Dara Mac Dónaill/The Irish Times
Niall McPartland (left) and his father-in-law, Seán Quinn. Quinn Finance had claimed the €6.1m payments in 2008 payments were to meet margin calls on contracts for difference investments in shares in Anglo Irish Bank. Photograph: Dara Mac Dónaill/The Irish Times

Quinn Finance has settled its action brought against Niall McPartland, a solicitor and son-in-law of businessman Seán Quinn, over payments of more than €6 million made by the company to Mr McPartland in 2008.

Quinn Finance had claimed the payments were to meet margin calls on contracts for difference (CFDs) investments in shares in Anglo Irish Bank and that there was no record of the payments being authorised by Quinn Finance.

Lawyers for Mr McPartland previously said the payments related to investments in shares in Anglo and Mr McPartland did not stand to make any personal gain from them.

Settlement talks have been under way between the sides for some time and, at the Commercial Court yesterday, Mr Justice Peter Kelly was told that the case, initiated in 2012, was finally settled.

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Quinn Finance, which was removed by Irish Bank Resolution Corporation (formerly Anglo) from the control of the Quinn family in April 2011, took the proceedings against Mr McPartland, Castleknock Road, Castleknock, Dublin.

Robert Dix, the new chairman of Quinn Finance, previously said it wanted to recover €6.1 million from Mr McPartland.

In an affidavit, Mr Dix said a review of Quinn Finance documents showed transfers of more than €11 million had been made from Quinn Finance to NCB Stockbrokers between June to December 2008.

A NCB wealth management application form signed by Mr McPartland on April 22nd, 2008, stated the sources of his wealth as inheritance, sale of property and other family inheritance, Mr Dix said.

Attached to that form was a mandate from Mr McPartland authorising NCB Stockbrokers to open an account with IG Markets Ltd to trade CFDs as agent on behalf of Mr McPartland.

Analysis of documents showed some €6.1 million was transferred from Quinn Finance to NCB for the benefit of Mr McPartland between June and October 2008, Mr Dix said. He had written to NCB on August 30th, 2011, asking for information about these transfers.

On October 4th, 2011, NCB replied stating that acting on instructions, it had credited each of the transfers to the account of Mr McPartland, Mr Dix said.

Quinn International Property Management Ltd sought further information from NCB.

In early December 2011, NCB had said that each time there was a margin payment due on Mr McPartland’s account, Ian Quigley of NCB contacted Mark McNamara or Paul McKenna of Quinn Finance, to inform him of the funds required, which were then transferred to NCB.

Mary Carolan

Mary Carolan

Mary Carolan is the Legal Affairs Correspondent of the Irish Times