Parmalat administrator seeks ruling

The Government-appointed administrator of Parmalat will today ask the Supreme Court to overturn the appointment of Mr Pearse …

The Government-appointed administrator of Parmalat will today ask the Supreme Court to overturn the appointment of Mr Pearse Farrell as liquidator of the company's Irish unit.

Mr Farrell of Farrell Grant Sparks was appointed by Bank of America which is owed €3.9 million by Eurofood IFSC.

The Italian courts have ruled that Eurofood should come under Mr Bondi's administration and he is seeking the removal of Mr Farrell on this basis.

Bank of America and Mr Farrell are in turn contesting the appointment of Dr Bondi by the Italian courts as special administrator to Eurofood.

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The hearing is scheduled to take place in Bologna on May 31st.

Both sides have the option of asking the Supreme Court to refer the matter to the European Court of Justice in Luxembourg. n Italian prosecutors have asked a judge to order a trial for Parmalat's founder, 28 other executives and three financial institutions involved in the dairy group's accounting scandal.

Mr Calisto Tanzi, who built Parmalat into a food multinational before its near-collapse under €14 billion of debt in December in one of the world's biggest corporate meltdowns, was among those on the list, a judicial source said.

The prosecutors also named the Italian affiliates of Bank of America and of auditors Deloitte & Touche, and auditor Grant Thornton's former Italian office.

"We do not believe the facts support this charge against Bank of America. We will defend ourselves vigorously," the number-three US bank said in a statement.

Three former Bank of America employees were among the 29 individuals on the prosecutors' list, the source said.

The accused were the same as those named by the prosecutors in March when they unsuccessfully sought a fast-track trial.

Deloitte & Touche in Italy declined to comment. It has previously said it met auditing standards when it signed off on Parmalat's books. Grant Thornton's former unit in Italy, Italaudit, has denied wrongdoing.

The scandal shook financial and political establishments in Italy and beyond, as Parmalat's empire spanned 30 countries. - (Additional reporting by Reuters)

John McManus

John McManus

John McManus is a columnist and Duty Editor with The Irish Times