Dunnes Stores head, Margaret Heffernan, is seeking the strike-out of High Court proceedings brought by a man who claims his property in Blackrock, Co Dublin, has been interfered with by building work.
Derek O’Shaughnessy, with an address at the Morning Star Hotel, Dublin, claims he owns the property at Redgate 1 and 2, Annaville Avenue.
Last week, he got interim High Court orders preventing Ms Heffernan and a number of other defendants from interfering with the property.
He applied for the orders on an “ex parte” basis, which meant his was the only side presented to the court on that day.
The defendants, who were not in court, were Ms Heffernan, Thomas Corcoran, of scaffolding firm Blackhorse Scaffolding, Frank Curran, chief executive of Dún Laoghaire Rathdown County Council and five gardaí based at Blackrock and Dundrum Garda stations.
Mr O’Shaughnessy claims Mr Corcoran, among other things, unlawfully erected scaffolding around his Annaville Avenue property from June 25th, 2022, to July 21st, 2022. He also claims Mr Corcoran unlawfully evicted him from his residence with the aid of members of the gardaí.
He claims Mr Curran, among other things, issued a scaffolding licence without verifying ownership claims, leading to such activities as an alleged roof removal without planning permission.
He alleges the gardaí collaborated with Mr Corcoran’s men.
He claims Ms Heffernan, chief executive of Dunnes, appropriated land that was historically part of his property to build a car park “possibly without lawful title”. He also claims she allowed the car park surrounding his property to be used for lowering a digger via a crane to facilitate “property destruction”.
He is claiming €2.5 million in damages, including €2 million punitive damages. His ownership claims, he says, are under the Succession Act 1965, possessory title through long-term occupation and adverse possession.
On Thursday, Martin Hayden SC, for Ms Heffernan, told Mr Justice David Nolan his client strongly denied all the allegations and was asking the court to strike out Mr O’Shaughnessy case.
Mr Justice Nolan granted counsel, who made the application on an ex parte basis, liberty to bring a strike out application next week.
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