Dublin International Arena Ltd (DIAL), the company which failed to get the contract to build the national aquatic centre at Abbotstown, Co Dublin, was ordered by the High Court yesterday to provide security for costs in an action it has brought against the State and Campus Stadium Ireland Development Ltd (CSID).
CSID is the company set up by the State to assess and award the contract. Both the State and CSID had sought security for their legal costs from DIAL.
They alleged DIAL had deliberately financed itself in such a way as to ensure it did not have money should legal costs be awarded against it if it lost its challenge to the decision to award the contract to Waterworld (UK) Ltd.
Mr Justice O'Caoimh, in a reserved judgment yesterday, decided that DIAL should provide security for costs to the State and CSID. It would be a matter for the master of the High Court to decide the amounts which should be provided by DIAL.
However, in the case of the State, Mr Justice O'Caoimh said the security should be confined to one-third of the security to be assessed by the master.
Both the State and CSID deny claims by DIAL's chairman, Mr Martin Kenney, that the winning consortium was allowed by CSID to "reinvent itself", and that under-bidders were visited with inequity and unfairness "'by means of the awarding authority's participation with the winning consortium".