The Margin had occasion to be in the Masters Court in the Four Courts in Dublin recently. The Master is a Mr Harry Hill SC and he hears applications for orders of discovery and the settlement of disputes over debts. The court is a very busy one with rows of bewigged and begowned men and women waiting their moment.

While the Margin was waiting for a case it was interested in to be called a barrister representing National Irish Bank (NIB) in the case NIB vs Higgins got to his feet. The defendant was not in court but consented to an agreed figure of £90,406 plus interest, the master was told. Mr Hill scanned the papers and found that the original tot by the bank in relation to how much was owed had had to be corrected. "It fills you with belief in our banking system when they can't add their figures," he commented. How could he believe any of the figures in the documents, he asked? The barrister said the matter had been agreed.

But Mr Hill continued to voice dissatisfaction. He found another 10p mistake in the documentation. "Presumably they have adding machines and ordinary intelligent staff," he said. "It must just be beyond them." Understandably, the barrister said nothing. The central issue in the case was not outlined but it seems the bank was charging loan interest on the defendant's current account and current account interest on the loan account. "It doesn't reflect too well on the National Irish Bank," Mr Hill said. "But I suppose they're all the same." The matter was agreed.