State ordered to pay most of P.J. Mara's legal costs

The State has been ordered to pay most of the legal costs incurred by former government press secretary Mr P.J. Mara when appearing before the Mahon tribunal.

Mr Mara had sought costs of more than €80,000, exclusive of the costs of his counsel, a figure for which he has yet to advance.

The final amount of costs to be paid will be determined after a hearing before the High Court Taxing Master.

The tribunal chairman, Judge Alan Mahon, yesterday decided that Mr Mara should receive costs on a party-party basis - a lower level of legal costs than the solicitor-client basis.

He also ruled that, in light of the tribunal's finding that Mr Mara had failed to co-operate with the tribunal in disclosing documents regarding his bank accounts, which failure Judge Mahon described as a matter of "extreme seriousness", that Mr Mara should not receive the costs of discovery.

Those costs have yet to be specified.

Mr Mara came before the tribunal after Mr James Stafford of Century Radio alleged he had been told by Mr Oliver Barry, also of Century, that there was a rumour in 1988 that former Fianna Fáil minister Mr Ray Burke and Mr Mara expected to receive payment of £90,000 for the independent radio licence.

Mr Stafford had also said Mr Barry told him in 1990 that Mr Mara was seeking a sum of £30,000 from Century.

Mr Mara rejected the allegations.

As part of its inquiry into the claims, the tribunal sought to establish whether Mr Mara had received monies which could be attributed to payments made by the broadcasting licence holders.

By order of the tribunal in December 2000, Mr Mara was ordered to furnish details of his bank accounts. The tribunal found Mr Mara failed to disclose to it that he was the beneficial holder of an account held in the Isle of Man by a company called Pullman Limited.

In his costs ruling yesterday, Judge Mahon said no adverse finding relating to any substantive matter being investigated by the tribunal was made against Mr Mara.

A former accountant and adviser to the builders Brennan and McGowan has failed to secure orders requiring the State to pay the full costs of his appearance before the tribunal.

Mr Hugh Owens will have 30 per cent of his tribunal costs met by the State, the tribunal chairman ruled yesterday.

Given the tribunal's finding that Mr Owens had failed to co-operate with it, he could not realistically have expected to have his costs paid, Judge Mahon said.