High Court rejects CAB claim

The High Court has rejected an application by the Criminal Assets Bureau (CAB) for a court order compelling the Flood tribunal to discover all documents relating to its efforts to obtain - from parties other than the CAB - material seized by the CAB from the former assistant Dublin county manager, Mr George Redmond.

The CAB sought the documents for judicial review proceedings in which it is challenging the tribunal's decision that the CAB must produce documents seized from Mr Redmond in February. The action will be heard on June 15th.

In the action, the CAB is claiming that production of the documents to the tribunal will prejudice investigations by the bureau and i Garda and, possibly, subsequent criminal prosecutions. It claims the tribunal has no jurisdiction to determine if the documents are privileged.

Yesterday, Mr Paul Butler SC, for the CAB, brought a motion for discovery of certain documents which the bureau claims it requires for the judicial review proceedings. The documents sought relate to any efforts by the tribunal to procure the Redmond documents from other sources.

The application was opposed by Mr Felix McEnroy SC, for the tribunal.

Refusing the application, Mr Justice Peter Kelly said a court had discretion to make an order for discovery if it was satisfied this was necessary to dispose fairly of the case or to save costs.

He was satisfied the CAB had failed to make out a case on either ground. He said the documents sought had not the slightest relevance to the central issue in the judicial review proceedings, whether the Flood tribunal had jurisdiction to decide that no privilege attached to the Redmond documents in the CAB's possession. That was an issue of pure law.

He was also satisfied the documents were not necessary to deal with legal argument as to whether the tribunal must make efforts to secure the documents from other sources before approaching the CAB. That matter would have to be decided subsequent to a court decision on whether there was a legal obligation on the tribunal to exhaust such remedies.

The judge noted that Mr McEnroy on behalf of the tribunal had offered to produce an affidavit, sworn by its solicitor, Ms Mary Cummins, setting out the steps taken by the tribunal to seek the documents from sources other than the CAB.

This would more than meet any requirement of the CAB, the judge said. On the basis of the undertaking to swear that affidavit, he was refusing the application.