Sean Dunne’s trial, insurance woes, and the need for reform on medicine prices

Business Today: the best news, analysis and comment from The Irish Times business desk

Gayle Killilea, the wife of Irish property developer Sean Dunne, enters the US Federal Court House  in New Haven, Connecticut on May 13th in connection with his civil trial. Photograph: Douglas Healey for The Irish Times
Gayle Killilea, the wife of Irish property developer Sean Dunne, enters the US Federal Court House in New Haven, Connecticut on May 13th in connection with his civil trial. Photograph: Douglas Healey for The Irish Times

Sean Dunne verbally promised his wife Gayle Killilea at least €60 million in assets pursuant to a handwritten document the couple signed during a 2005 Thailand vacation, a US court was told on Monday. Christopher Hoffman heard her testimony.

It was a bad day for Insurance Ireland, which will be the subject of a formal anti-trust investigation by the European Commission in relation to a key database it holds on claims and settlements. The one silver lining is that the commission has dropped a separate investigation into concerns of anti-competitive practices in the market for insuring trucks and lorries in the Republic. Joe Brennan reports.

The Government and pharmaceutical companies need to fundamentally reform the approach to setting medicine prices, the head of one of the major drug companies will tell a conference in Dublin today. Dominic Coyle has the details.

In her weekly column, Fiona Reddan looks at how some landlords are using a loophole in planning rules to offer short-term corporate lets at sky-high rents.

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Ciarán Hancock

Ciarán Hancock

Ciarán Hancock is Business Editor of The Irish Times