The communications regulator, ComReg, did not give Smart Telecom enough time to respond to concerns it had about draft bonds that the company submitted to secure a mobile licence from the agency, the High Court heard yesterday. Barry O'Halloran reports.

ComReg offered Smart a third generation (3G) mobile licence last November, but withdrew the offer on February 13th because it says the company failed to provide it with satisfactory bonds by an agreed deadline of January 30th.

The bonds, for a total of €100 million, were supposed to guarantee that Smart would meet agreed milestones in building the network and providing a service.

The company says it submitted draft bonds by January 27th and has gone to the High Court asking it to order ComReg to issue the licence.

The regulator rejected the drafts because they included conditions saying that no money would be payable if the licence were revoked or the company became insolvent.

Smart says it was willing to work with ComReg to solve those problems.

In a final summing up yesterday, Smart's senior counsel, Paul Gardiner, said ComReg had a discretion to extend the January 30th deadline.

The regulator met with Smart on February 2nd to discuss the issues, and the company believed the regulator would come back to clarify its position on the conditions. Mr Gardiner said that ComReg failed to do this.

"Smart was not in a position to provide bonds acceptable to ComReg because it did not know what ComReg's requirements were on insolvency and revocation before January 28th and was given inadequate time to respond to same," he said.

The hearing ended yesterday and Mr Justice Peter Kelly has reserved judgment.